Memories of No One
by Danny vs A Month
Summary: Pain erased his past. Memory shapes his future. And peace leads him to war. OCxOrphan/Cassandra CainXRose Wilson
1. Chapter 1

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

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Unknown

Lights. Sirens. Pain. An all-consuming agony radiating from head to spine to body in an unbearable flood. Every cell burning. Every scream sending blood flying past red-stained teeth. Every gasp of breath feeling like liquid fire.

This was his existence. He didn't know how long. He couldn't remember. He just knew it was. The pain was infinite, and indescribable. Unending. Whatever he had been before, the pain wiped away. All he was, all he knew, was agony. Pain. Suffering. He wanted it to end. Somehow. Some way. He wanted it to end. And yet, it dragged on.

He tried to judge by the beating of his heart, but he lost track, and he lost time. He couldn't remember when he had started. He couldn't remember how many there had been. Too many.

But he should know. He should. But know what? What was he trying to remember? What was he doing? All he could remember was the pain. All he knew was pain. All he was. His very existence was consumed by pain. An all-consuming agony radiating from head to spine to body in an unbearable flood. Every cell burning. Every scream sending blood flying past red-stained teeth. Every gasp of breath feeling like liquid fire.

He wanted it to stop. Needed it to stop. And suddenly, it did. He was floating, he thought, in a void. An endless abyss of darkness and numbness. Nothingness. Who was he? He couldn't remember. The pain had wiped it away. All he could remember was the pain. But now there was nothing. Just the darkness, and the void.

_This isn't so bad. I can accept being nothing._

He began to allow himself to drift, pulled by the darkness, and the comforting bliss of nothingness. But he couldn't go. There was something he still had to do. But what was it? What was he doing? Who was he again? Why was he here?

There was something. A light. Something in the darkness. Something that was drawing him away from the abyss. Away from the nothingness. He reached out for it. It was close. He could almost reach it. But then, the pain was back.

He shrank away. The light began to dim. He didn't want to feel the pain. He couldn't. Not again. He didn't want to lose himself again. But then...he could hear something. Beyond the pain. A voice, maybe? Yes. A voice. Someone was calling out to him. He just had to get through the pain.

But could he? _Was_ there even anything beyond the pain? Or was the pain all there was outside the abyss? What if the voice was in the pain too? What if he couldn't go back to the abyss? Or what if the voice _was_ beyond the pain, but he lost himself on the way?

The voice reached him again. It sounded different. He couldn't place how. And he wanted to. He wanted to know what was different. What the voice was saying. Who was calling out to him? Did he know them? Did they know him? Could they tell him who he was?

He stared at the light. He had to choose. So he did. He reached for the light. At the first flash of pain, he hesitated. But the voice called to him. So he reached further. He followed the voice into the pain. And then the voice was gone. Drowned out by his own voice, screaming. By every cell burning. Every breath feeling like liquid fire.

But then it was there again, softening the pain slowly, one cell at a time. Drawing him through it, out of the pain. It didn't end, but he became aware of other things. Flashing lights. Sirens screaming. Screams of agony. Not his own, though. They were higher. More shrill. More desperate. He lowered his head from the flashing lights and stared straight ahead.

A girl. A girl chained to the wall across from him. She was screaming, and crying. And there was blood running down her arms from cuts. Down her face from a cut on her forehead. Down her legs. Her legs were marred as bbadly as her arms, but not all of the blood was from the cuts. Part was from the man penetrating her. The man slapped her, laughed, then did it again. And again.

And the girl screamed. She called out. Begged for help. Begged the man to stop. But the man didn't. The man simply laughed again.

Pain flooded his senses again, robbing him of his sight. But it was different now. Muted. He tried to move his arm, and it complied. He punched the sheet of glass in front of himself. The glass exploded outward. And then the pain was gone. He reached out, grabbing the man by the back of the head and pulled, the man following easily. Then, he knelt and drove the man's head into the floor. Except, the floor cracked, and the man's head was suddenly shaped oddly.

And so was his hand. He stared at it. There was a black...thing around it, in the shape of a hand. It had sharp points on the ends of its fingers, and was about double the size of his normal left hand. Or...maybe it _was_ normal? He didn't think so. And after a moment, the black thing began to shrink, seeping into his hand and leaving it like the other.

He stared at it. Then, he stood, walking over to the girl. She was crying still, so he reached up to the metal rings holding her arms to the wall. He pulled on them, but nothing happened. Maybe the black thing could help. It had to have some kind of purpose.

And suddenly it was there. Growing out of his hand, looking like black slime. He pulled again and the metal ring shattered. So did the others. He caught the girl as she fell, gently setting her down as the black goo around his hand sank into him again.

"Thank you!" she sobbed. "Thank you!"

"Who...are...you?" he asked, voice hoarse and broken from the pain.

"You...You don't...remember me?" She asked.

He shook his head. "Who...who...am...I?"

"We can't talk here," she said, standing, wiping her eyes. "We need to get out. Then we can talk."

He nodded. Out sounded good. Out meant away from the pain. He hoped.

The girl took his hand and turned, guiding him toward the door as quickly as she could. She was wounded, but they were making progress. Slow progress, but progress. They were in a tunnel. The walls were rough, like a cave, but there were so many of them. Too many. He didn't know where they were going.

Finally, they entered a large room with a shuttered door off to the side just as the door rose, several men with large guns running in and opening fire at them. His arms snapped up and a wall of black goo blocked the bullets. The girl grabbed a rock off of the ground and hurled it, the rock suddenly glowing. Then, as it hit in the midsts of the men, it exploded, hurling them all.

After a moment of no one shooting, the girl took his hand again, beginning to run toward another tunnel. Then, they were following them again. After a few minutes, they reached another large room with far more armed men.

The girl began to run at them instantly, grabbing rocks as she ran and hurling them. He followed after her, concentrating and forming goo over both arms. One of the men turned to attack him but he drilled a punch into the man's chest and sent him flying. Another drew a knife and leapt at the girl, but found himself flying through the air after one of the goo arms extended to punch him from a distance. Another five were waiting between a pair of tanks to ambush their targets before a punch from a goo arm slammed the tanks together in a spray of blood and bits of metal. Then, they were out. They ran down a hill outside the cave for several minutes before reaching the beach where a small boat was waiting. The girl guided him into it before climbing in as well, pushing off of shore and starting the motor speeding away from the island.

"Can we talk now?" he asked, noticing his throat had healed. "Who am I? How do you know me?"

"We grew up together," she said. "Your name is-"

Blood splattered across his face as hers exploded. He looked down as his chest, where black goo had stopped a bullet from hitting him in the heart. He looked back at the island over the girl's body, and suddenly, the island didn't seem as far. He felt dizzy, but before he could close his eyes, he made out a white mask with one red eye over a red body suit.

Then, he closed his eyes, his nausea passing slowly. When he opened his eyes, the island looked as distant as it had at first, and there were no new bullets in the boat. He stared at the girl. Who was she?

He moved her body to the front of the boat and began to steer, leaving the island behind without really knowing where he was going.

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	2. Chapter 2

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

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Forged Identity

The boat drifted on the waves with a gentle bobbing motion, the sounds of the water broken only by the wreching on the boat's occupant. Raw fish was harder to eat than he had thought. But still better them than the girl, probably. Her burial at sea had been...underwhelming. It hadn't stirred up any new memories. It had simply been him dropping a rotting corpse into the water and leaving it for the fish to eat or leave alone.

His stomach rolled and he loosed another torrent of fish chunks and bile into the ocean. He decided he hated the ocean. The motor was out of gas, his goo wasn't responding, and the handful of fish that had accidentally jumped into the boat had made him sick. His life sucked.

He slumped down in the boat, feeling his stomach continue to roll but not as violently. Above him, the clouds drifted slowly. The breeze danced against his skin. If he could just get his powers to work, he could probably make a sail, or a motor, or something. He raised his hand, but nothing happened.

He sighed heavily. If this kept up, if something didn't change, if someone didn't find him, he would die in that boat. As if on cue, a quiet chopping sound reached his ears, growing louder rapidly. Then, a helicopter flew into view, passing over him. However, as it does, a man with his greying hair shaved on the sides and flat on the top leaned out, stared at him a moment, then leaned back in. A moment later, the helicopter swung around and flew back, flying low before hovering above him. A rope ladder dropped out of the side and he grabbed on, climbing up to the helicopter. The man was standing to his left, and to his right was a woman in her early twenties or so, maybe a few years older than him, though he wasn't sure how he knew his own age, since he didn't know anything else about himself. She hard dark brown hair hanging to her shoulders, a dao sword hanging at her hip, and a knife in her right hand, hidden behind her arm. He woundn't have noticed it if he hadn't looked for it specifically, though how he knew to look for it he had no idea.

"Who are you?" the man asked, one hand on one of his two pistols.

"I...don't know," he said. "I can't remember."

"Nothing?" the man asked.

He shook his head.

"What _do_ you remember?" the man asked.

"Pain," he said. "So much pain. And then nothing. I think I might have been dying. And then more pain. Then...I woke up. And there was...some girl being raped."

"Oh?"

"I saved her, but..."

"And where is she now?" the man asked.

"Dead," he said. "Someone shot her."

"Did you get a good look at them?" the man asked.

He opened his mouth to respond but paused, brow furrowing. For some reason, he didn't think he should. He shook his head. "It was too far away."

The man and the girl exchanged a look.

"And he didn't shoot you?" the man asked.

Again he shook his head.

"Interesting," the man said. "How did you save the girl?"

"I have...some kind of power," he said. "There's this...goo. But it's not working right now."

"Give it another try," the man encouraged.

He held his hands out, focusing. Slowly, his skin began to turn black before the goo formed, expanding to cover his arms again. The man reached over with the hand not on his pistol, feeling the substance and humming thoughtfully.

"What does it do?" the man asked.

"Makes me stronger, stretches, blocks bullets, makes objects, like a shield," he listed. "I think it might heal me some too, but I'm not sure."

"Interesting," the man nodded. "Do you have any idea who you are?"

He shook his head. "I don't remember anything."

"I see," the man nodded. "How would you like to come with us? Perhaps we can help you learn to use your power properly, and maybe we'll be able to help you remember."

"I...alright," he nodded.

"First he will need a name," the woman said. "Cassius. Derrived from the greek word cassus, meaning empty."

"I..." he stared at the floor of the helicopter.

It fit. He _was_ empty. He had no past. No identity. Cassius worked. He nodded, pushing himself to his feet. As he did, the man grunted and nodded.

"Cassius will do," the man said. "I'm David Cain. This is my associate Lady Shiva. We work for an organization known as the League of Shadows. You need to know this now, Cassius. If you agree to join us, if you accept this life we offer you, there's no going back. You turn your back on the light, and you will live in the darkness forever."

"I don't know the light," Cassius said. "I can't remember it. All I've known js pain. But in that pain, it was the darkness that brought me peace, and rest from the pain. So I have no problem living in the shadows."

Cain nodded. "Then we'll take you to our superiors, and they can decide whether or not you are worthy of joining."

"So, you can't decide?" Cassius asked.

"For starters, we don't even know if you _are_ worthy," Lady Shiva said. "It remains to be seen. Having a power does not guarantee you entrance into the Shadows. But aside from that, no, we do not lead the Shadows. So you'll have to be tested by our superiors."

Cassius nodded. "Alright. As long as it helps me remember, I'm all for it."

The other two nodded and they all fell silent, waiting for the helicopter to reach its destination.

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	3. Chapter 3

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

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Tested

Cassius knelt before the throne, as he had been warned to. The man before him, leader of the League of Shadows, regarded him in silence, one finger tapping the arm of his throne. Finally, he raised a hand and waved it.

Instantly, a gunshot rang out and pain seared through Cassius from his chest, followed by cold. It spread through him slowly, turning his veins to ice as he slumped to the ground. He watched the life slowly bleed out through the hole in his chest, but he couldn't move. It had hit his spine. He was paralized. He was going to die. He let his eyes slide closed. Oh well. It didn't make that much difference. He wasn't exactly losing much.

A face flashed behind his eyes. Blonde hair. Shining blue eyes. A content smile. Suddenly, he felt something filling him. A cold feeling, entirely different than before. It squeezed his chest like a vice, blocking out the exhausexhaustion and pain entirely. Fear. He was afraid, but not of dying. What was it? What scared him? And who was the face?

His eyes snapped open as his body switched to instinct, shoving itself up as black goo erupted from his chest, sealing the wound before two massive spikes of it burst out of his back, stabbing at Cain and Lady Shiva, both of whom avoided them. Then, the spikes restracted as Cassius spun toward them, goo covering his arms. He couldn't die. Not yet.

He shot forward, spreading goo from his left hand into a shield, blocking Cain's bullets before using the shield to knock the gun aside and drilled a punch into Cain's chest, hurling him. Then, he spun, right arm deflecting Lady Shiva's sword only for her to spin, dropping to one knee and slashing him across the stomach. Goo instantly shot out of the opposite edges of the wound, connecting and stitching the wouwound closed before goo coated his leg and foot and he slammed a kick into her gut, hurling her away.

Several gunshots went off behind him but goo protected him this time before he spun, right arm extending into a massive curved blade, slashing at Cain, only for him to drop under it. As he lunged at Cain, Lady Shiva stepped in front of him, stabbing him, only for his hands to clasp on his right and club her in the head, sending her flying.

Cain raised his gun again but a long spike of goo shot out of the goo around Cassius's right arm, drilling itself through the gun's barrel and smashing it, pieces of metal and bullets scattering across the ground. Cassius stepped forward, but as he through a punch, Cain stepped forward, duckinng under it then standing and drilling his own fist into Cassius's jaw. Cassius staggered away, only for a fist to impact with his gut. Then a foot his his jaw and he spun. Cain drove a knife into his back and used it to drag him backward, before ripping it out and slamming an elbow into his nose. Then' he drove the knife into Cassius's abdomen. Goo wrapped around tbe knife's hilt instantly so Cain released it, uppercutting Cassius's chin. The, he grabbed Cassius by the head and yanked him down into a leaping knee, sending him staggering backward onto Lady Shiva's sword. She knstantly slashed out through his side and stepped out of the way before Cain drilled a knee into Cassius's abdomen, then jumped and spun, slamming his other foot into his face, hurling him away. As Cassius landed, Cain ripped the knife out and pulled it back to drive it into Cassius's face.

"Stop," the man in the throne said, watching as Cassius's wounds slowly mended themselves, though Cassius only groaned weakly, head spinning and entire body feeling a thousand pounds. "That is quite enough. He needs time to get a proper grip on his powers, but we can use this one. Cain, you will train him. For the time being. Once you've decided he has learned all he can from you, send him to Deathstroke. I believe Deathstroke will find a good use for him.

"As you wish, Lord Ra's al Ghul," Cain bowed, Lady Shiva doing the same.

Cain lifted Cassius onto his shoulder and carried him out of the room.

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Cassius ducked under Cain's fist and stood, drilling his own into Cain's jaw, sending him staggering backward. Cain nodded approvingly, but as Cassius threw his following strike, caught the punch at the rist and yanked Cassius forward before releasing the arm and driving his elbow into Cassius's face, flipping him backward. Cassius groaned, holding his hands to his nose.

"Don't drop your guard, even for a second," Cain said. "Always assume the enemy is about to kill you. Even if his brains are running across the floor, expect him to get up and fight you again at any moment."

Cassius nodded just before his nose reset itself. He shouted in pain, clutching his face again before standing.

"Again!"

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Cassius watched the target walk down the street. Three days, the exact same schedule. Predictable. Sloppy. Beginner level. Morning run around the city, breakfast at the cafe, work in an office building for seven hours, cafe on the way home, evening run, bed. All paths taken are through alleyways, all meals are beside picture windows, office cubicle is beside the window. Easy.

The target stepped into an alleyway and Cassius dropped behind him. The moment he landed, he grabbed the man's head, goo encasing both his own hand and the man's head for several minutes before the man went limp. He retracted the goo and set the man's body against the wall of the alleyway and walked out into the nearly deserted street, walking away. Then, the world around him froze and faded to black. When he opened his eyes, he was lying on a table, Cain standing over him.

"Passable," Cain said. "But for higher difficulty missions, you're going to have to be faster."

Cassius nodded. "I understand."

"Good," Cain nodded. "Time to spar."

Cassius nodded and followed him out of the room.

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Cassius watched as Cain sighted in, adjusting his scope. Then, after a moment, he squeezed off a shot, placing it just off-center of the target a thousand meters ahead of them. Cassius lay down behind his own rifle and sighted in, adjusting as necessary before placing his own shot just outside the bull's eye to the right.

"Don't jerk the trigger," Cain said.

Cassius fired again, hitting just above the bull's eye.

"Breathing control," Cain said.

Cassius fired again. Just to the left.

"Muscling," Cain said. "Again."

* * *

Cassius watched as Cain walked into the room. He awaited his assignment in silence, as he had learned to over the last few months he'd been training. Cain was a brutal teacher. In their fights, he didn't hesitate to wound. If not for Cassius's powers, he'd be long dead. But it had payed off. Cassius was a cold, efficient machine now. Capable even of facing Cain on level ground without his powers.

"You've got your first assignment," Cain said, holding out a folder. "Kill her. Do not be seen."

Cassius opened the folder and stopped. The face. The same he had seen the day he was tested. Cassius's brow furrowed.

"Who is she?" Cassius asked, only for Cain's fist to crash into his jaw.

Cain landed several more blows before stopping. "Do not question my orders. Complete your assignment."

Cassius wiped some blood from his broken nose and bowed, grimacing as it reset itself before walking out of the room. He followed the hallways to Cain's personal stealth jet he was allowed to take for the assignment, giving the pilot the coordinates, then walked to the bathroom. He stared in the mirror as his head throbbed. It had started shortly after seeing her face, and it was rapidly growing unbearable. He stared at his reflection. He was pale, sweating, and his dark brown hair clung to his forehead, reaching almost to his eyebrows on top, then shaved on the sides, like Cain's. His once light brown eyes had darkened over time to black, and the sclaera around the irises was bloodshot. He sighed, sitting down on the toilet and cradling his head in his hands as images began to assault him.

A white house, a blue SUV, the face, two children. A horrible thought occured to him. What if this was his family? What if this was his wife? He shook his head. Do not question the order. Cain's first rule.

More images assaulted him. A wedding. Chasing the children along a beach. He swallowed hard. It wasn't him. He wasn't anyone. He was a Shadow. He didn't need a past. But then, hadn't that been his reason for becoming a shadow in the first place?

A knock on the door jarred him from his thoughts. "Five minutes."

He took a deep breath. Maybe this was good. Maybe she could tell him who he was. Maybe she could tell him who the girl on the island had been. Maybe she could tell him what to do next.

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	4. Chapter 4

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

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Introduction

Cassius watched as the woman walked through her kitchen, preparing dinner. She was beautiful. She moved with a natural grace and he somehow knew that she was humming as she cooked. He walked to the door, placing his finger to the lock and sending goo into it, using it to forform a key and unlock the door before opening it and closing it behind himself again.

He walked to the living room and stopped, staring at a picture on the wall. The woman and her two children, and a man. Blonde, like the rest of the family, with emerald green eyes and tan skin. Definitely not him.

He turned, walking to the kitchen and stopping, watching the woman as she folded eggs into omlettes. If she wasn't his wife, if they weren't his memories, then who was she?

"What is your name?" he asked, the woman gasping harshly and spinning, eyes widening as she grabbed a knife.

"Who are you?" she demanded. "How did you get in here?"

"I unlocked the door," Cassius said. "What's your name? Please, I need to know."

"It's...It's Rebecca," she said, watching him suspiciously. "Wbo are you?"

"I'm Cassius," he said. "But...before that...I don't know. I don't remember. But...I know you, somehow. You really don't know me?"

She shook her head. "What do you want, Cassius?"

"I have orders," Cassius said, walking over to stand in front of her. "I'm sorry."

"You're here to kill me," she sighed. "I see. I knew his line of work would eventually follow him home."

"Him?" Cassius asked.

"My husband," she said, setting the knife down. "He fought to save humanity for years. He was always afraid of assassins coming for us, so we moved often. But then one day, an assassin came for him during a job, and he never came home."

"I'm sorry," Cassius said. "If it's any consolation, I'll make it painless."

"Promise me something," she said. "Don't kill my children. Please. You can do whatever you want to me. Even if that means that I allow you to use me before you kill me. Just please let my children live."

Cassius stared at the floor, an image of the girl from the island filling his mind. "I'm not going to rape you. And I'll try not to kill them." He held out his hand, goo spreading from it to cover her nose and mouth.

"Mom?" a small voice said from behind Cassius.

He spun, eyes wide, as the two children stared at them. The woman screamed in desperation. She pulled at his shirt to get him to turn back to them.

"I'm so sorry," Cassius sighed. "I'm not allowed any whitnesses."

Then, he sent an arm made entirely out of goo out of his back, grabbing them by the face as well before lifting them. All three struggled to break free, struggling to breathe. The woman grabbed the knife and drove it into his chest, but he pulled her hand off of it, leaving it there until all three fell still. He pulled the knife out carefully and set the three around the table, leaving goo over their faces as he cleaned the knife and sink with bleach.

Then, after about ten minutes, he took the goo back from their faces and left the house, walking out of the small town and finding the jet waiting. He climbed on and it took offoffb flying away from the town quickly.

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Cassius stepped into the training room and picked up a wooden sword.

"You did well," Cain said. "How did it feel?"

"It didn't," Cassius said. "Death is merely another part of life."

"Good," Cain said. "Now, let's see how much you've improved since our last sword training session."

Cassius nodded, readying himself with the sword held horizontally across his chest, pointed at Cain as he turned profile to him. Cain waited for a moment before picking up his own wooden sword and charging. He struck at Cassius in a flurry of slashes and stabs, which Cassius struggled to fend off. Cassius backpedalled quickly, before spinning around Cain and slashing at his back. Cain spun, deflecting the sword, then slammed his own into Cassius's nose, a seemingly favorite target of Cain's. Then, Cain was beating Cassius senseless. Finally, Cassius formed snot around his free hand, catching Cain's sword and swiped his own at Cain's abdome , only to miss as Cain leapt back. Then, Cain landed on his feet and lunged, burrying his knife in Cassius's heart. He wrenched it back out and Cassius staggered backeard as blood squirted out of the wound before falling to his knees, his goo sesling the wound and healing it.

"I've warned you about using your powers when training with me," Cain said. "Go get cleaned up. We're going on an assignment together in two hours."

"Yes sire," Cassius said, standing.

He walked away from him, heading to his room and showering before grabbing a quick meal and meeting back up with Cain.

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The target reached the clearing of the park and turned, looking around.

"Well, Shadows?" he asked, raising his voice so they could hear him. "Are you going to keep hiding, or attack? Cain? Lady Shiva? New blood?"

The three of them stepped out. Cassius shouldn't be surprised. Our target _was_ a famous intergalactic bounty hunter who had supposedly never lost a fight. But still, knowing about the Shadows was huge. No one was supposed to know about them.

"You're well informed," Cain said, apparently sharing Cassius's sentiments. "How did you learn of the Shadows?"

"Simple," the man smirked. "I came to this planet to join the Justice League. One does not join them without knowing who o e will be up against."

"The who?" Cassius asked.

"Justice League," Cain said. "A group of extremely powerful aliens and meta-humans who oppose the Shadows."

"Oh," Cassius nodded. "Okay."

"You don't seem bad, kid," the target said. "Who are you?"

"Void," Cassius said, using the moniker Cain gave me for the assignment.

"Nice to meet you," the target nodded.

"And you," Cassius said, forming goo over his arms. "I'm sorry for this. It's not personal."

"Indeed," the man nodded. "It's just business. So don't think too badly of me when I kill you all." Then, he drew a pair of sawed off shotguns.

Both went off and Cassius flew backward, his torso screaming in agony. Cain reacted first, opening fire with a pair of pistols, though the target was already moving and was able to stay out of the way. He drew a pistol of his own, along with a knife, just as Lady Shiva reached him, slashing. He deflected it off of the knife and jumped over several pistols, firing at Cain twice before blocking Lady Shiva's sword and being thrown backward. Then, as he flipped to the ground, Cassius's fist crashed into his crossed arms, hurling him backward. the target flipped, landing on his feet and skidding backward for a moment before raising his pistol and placing a bullet in each of Cassius's lungs, then his heart. As Cassius dropped, Lady Shiva slashed at the target, who deflected it into the air with his pistol. Before he could attack her, he was forced to leap backward as Cain slashed at him with his knife. He landed on his feet and raised his pistol only for Cassius to crush the slide and barrel.

The target made to leap away, but Cassius caught him by the face, goo encasing his head instantly as he held him up. The target drove his knife down at Cassiusb but Cassius used his hand to stop itb then wrenched the knife away. He focused, his goo reaching into the target's mouth then expanding outward in his throat, compressing his carotid arteries from the inside. A few seconds later, he set the man down, retracting his goo. Cain knelt, inspecting the corpse and hummed thoughtfully.

"Not bad," Cain hummed. "Not a mark left on him, besides what we placed before."

"You've got skill," Lady Shiva commended.

"Thank you," Cassius said, just before something crashed to the ground off to the side.

They all turned, staring at several people. One were a blue bidy suit with a red "S" on the chest, red underwear and boots, and a red cape. One wore a black cape and cowl with a pair of pointed horns, or ears, a grey bodysuit with black underwear on the outside and a black bat symbol on the chest, and the last was a green-skinned alien wearing a black bodysuit, a blue cape, and with a bald head.

"Justice League," Cain growled. "Void, deal with them."

"Understood," Cassius nodded, forming goo over his arms.

The moment he charged, Lady Shiva and Cain retreated. The one in blue shot forward first, throwing a punch at Cassius, only for him to lean out of the way, landing his own instead. He flew backward just as a pair of smoke bombs went off on either side of him. He dropped into a low crouch as the one with the mask stepped out of the smoke, slamming a snap kick i to his head and sending him staggering away. The green one stepped forward and Cassius threw a pu ch only for the alien's eyes to glow green, Cassius's body freezing as he felt an odd tickling sensation in his head.

"You...do not remember who you are," the alien said. "You do not know what you are doing. Who you are serving. You haven't known a life other than this."

"I don't care!" Cassius snarled, a third arm made of slime erupting from his chest and slamming into the alien, launching him away.

Cassius spun instantly, deflecting the one with the mask's fist and caught a knee before drilling his ow. into the man's jaw. Then, the other one punched him, sending him bouncing across the ground. He struggled to stand, only for his body to give out, collapsing back into the dirt. As his eyes slid closed, the last thing he saw was a mental image of the sniper that had killed the girl from the island. Then, he was unconscious.

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	5. Chapter 5

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Work Ethic

Cassius groaned as he stirred, looking around himself. He was in a metal cell with no cracks anywhere, and when he punched the door, it was solid, though he could probably still break it. However, they likely knew that, so there would be countermeasures to keep him there. Not that he couldn't get away. He could get away with relative ease. The question was, was he abandoned, or would the Shadows send someone for him? And would they be there to save him, or eliminate him?

He sat against the wall, forming himself a ball of slime and beginning to bounce it off of the floor and wall, then caught it and threw it again. After several hours of this, a small metsl slat in the door finally opened.

"I'm surprised you're still here," Lady Shiva's voice said. "I figured you'd have broken out of here yourself by now."

"I was just waiting for permission," Cassius said.

"Granted," Lady Shiva said. "The Shadows still have a use for you. When you get outside, I'll be waiting."

The metal slat closed and Cassius rested a hand on the door, goo reachiung out of his hand, wrapping around the door, slipping between the door and the frame before squeezing, crushing the door into a ball. Across from him, a gun fired, an anti-aircraft round slamming into the remains of the door, exploding. He shot backward, crashing into the wall of the cell and groaning before kicking a chunk of door and sending it crashing into the gun, smashing it.

He sighed, standing and stepping out of the cell as footsteps echoed from the right. He turned, quickly moving down the hallway to the left and reaching a supply closet. Inside, he climbed into the ceiling and made his way through it to an air ductb then used his goo to keep quiet as he moved through it to the roof, where the air intace was. He broke it open, tripping an alarm, then walked to the edge and dropped, his goo legs cushioning the fall but cratering the ground. Then, he walked to the, motorcycle waiting in front of him, Lady Shiva seated on it.

He climbed on behind her, wrapping his arms around her before they sped off. Within seconds, several armored vehicles were following, but Lady Shiva dropped into a ditch and they sped into an exposed sewage tunnel, then slowed to a stop beside an electrical box. However, when Lady Shiva flipped a switch inside, the floor in front of them opened into a ramp and they sped into it, the floor rising again behind them. Cassius smirked. The Shadows had everything.

"Congratulations," Lady Shiva said. "You've officially broken out of the most secure prison on Earth, Belle Reve."

"Thank you," Cassius smiled. "I have no idea what that is, but thank you. And also thank you for the lift."

"No problem," Lady Shiva smiled. "And to answer your question, Belle Reve is a maximum security prison for meta-human, like yourself. Until you, it's been inescapable."

"You got in _and_ out," Cassius pointed out.

"That I did," she smirked as she slowed the bike to a stop in a round room with several computer screens displaying blacked-out silhouettes. "Sorry we're late. It took him a few minutes longer to get out than I anticipated."

"It's not a problem," one of the silhouettes said with a distorted voice. "It's nice to finally meet you, Cassius. I hear you have a knack for leaving no evidence."

"It's easier to get away if no one's looking for you," Cassius said. "I assume you have something in particular in mind?"

"He's very free with his choice of words," another voice criticized.

"I like it," a third chuckled. "He's got guts."

"I'm sending your mentor the details of a particular assignment," the first voice said. "It requires your specific tallents, and will be more of a challenge than you are used to. See that you do not disappoint me."

"I won't," Cassius said.

The screens winked out and Lady Shiva patted the seat behind her on the bike. Cassius sat down, wrapping his arms around her again and she sped off into a second tunnel.

"How are we getting out of here?" Cassius asked.

"About five miles down this tunnel is an underground helipad that will have a ride waiting for us," Lady Shiva said.

"How does the Justice League not know about this tunnel?" Cassius asked.

"Oh please," she snorted. "Most of the Shadows don't even know about this tunnel."

"Well, I feel honored," Cassius said.

Lady Shiva simply smiled and after a few more minutes, they reached the helipad. Lady Shiva loaded her bike and secured it before they both got on and strapped in, the helicopter taking off. It was a combat model, but with a mount in between the two rows of seats for the bike.

Cassius looked out the side door as they flew and after a few hours, they landed at a midway point before taking the bike back to Cain's hideout. Cain turned to him and grunted.

"Took you long enough," Cain said. "We've got an assignment. The target's death has to have no evidence whatsoever."

"I can manage that," Cassius nodded.

"Good," Cain nodded. "I'll run interference. Let's go."

Cassius nodded and followed him out of the room.

* * *

Cassius watched the target in silence. He was a business man; the owner of a shipping company that oonly ever did business with Wayne Enterprises. He was in his late fifties, and was a bit less than pleasant to be around. He was snippy, harsh, and didn't think anyone was worth his time, including his twenty four year old wife, Amelia.

"You'll have to gain access to the room," Cain said through the earpiece Cassius wore. "How you do it is up to you, but make sure he doesn't know you're there."

"Understood."

Amelia, having been outright ignored for the fifth time as she tried to talk to her husband, got another margarita and walked away. Cassius walked over to the bar and ordered the biggest, strongest thing they had. A moment later, he had a fish-bowl-challice with at least twenty vodka shots in it, some food coloring, a splash of soda, and a few lemons. He walked over to Amelia and set the drink in front of her.

"I'm sorry," Cassius said. "I couldn't help but notice your date was ignoring you, so I was wondering if you'd like some proper company. Also, I'm going to need some help finishing this."

Amelia smiled. "I don't know. He might not be too happy."

"Why?" Cassius asked. "We're just talking, right?"

Amelia's smile grew a little and she drained her own drink. Checkmate. Cassius sat down and introduced himself as a college student named James. They talked for a while, emptying the drink and another within an hour and a half. As they did, Cain payed the bar's DJ to turn the music up to the point that Amelia and Cassius had to shout to be heard. Finally, Cassius suggested they find somewhere quieter and they left together. They walked along the road, continuing to talk about Amelia's life, Amelia even admitting she was married and delving into her marital problems. Cassius was more than happy to keep her unhappy, then give her emotional support. Finally, they reached a five-star hotel and Amelia stopped.

"This is me," Amelia said hesitantly. "You've been so amazing. I haven't been able to enjoy myself with someone like this for so long. I'm a little sad to see it end."

"Well, it doesn't have to end yet, does it?" Cassius asked. "I think this hotel has a bar. One more drink before we call it a night? I'm starting to lose my buzz."

Amelia laughed. "Buzz? How are you not drunk?"

"What can I say?" Cassius asked, holding the door open for her. "My alcohol tolerance is so high I'm practically superhuman."

Amelia laughed again, the two of them heading to the bar. Once there, Cassius ordered a pair of Long IsIslands for them and carried them to where Amelia had sat down. She accepted her drink with a smile and they began to chat again, Cassius steering the conversation back to her marital problems, once again giving her emotional support. After another hour, and several more Long Islands, Amelia was finally ready to call it a night. They finished off their current drinks and headed to the elevator, Cassius taking her hand and wrapping an arm around her waist to steady her as they walked. They took the elevatoelevator to the top floor where the most extravegant suites were located, and Cassius walked her to her door. She unlocked the door and Cassius turned toward herb holding her close.

"I had a wonderful time tonight," Amelia smiled. "I haven't been so happy for years."

"I had a lot of fun too Amelia," Cassius smiled. "I'm not sure I want it to end."

"I'm sad to see you go," Amelia smiled.

"Maybe...I don't have to yet," Cassius said.

Amelia's eyes widened a little and some guilt filtered into her eyes along with a tidalwave of indecision. "I...I'm married. We shouldn't..."

Cassius leaned in, pressing his lips gently to hers, pulling back just as she began to respond. As he expected, she followed, letting out a shuddering breath as he returned the kiss. She reached overb struggling forba moment before getting the door open. Then, he picked her up, carrying her inside and kicking the door closed behind himself. In the short trip throught the main room, which included an indoor pool, to the bedroom, both of them lost their clothes.

As soon as Amelia's back hit the bed, she guided him inside of her. Cassius hissed in pleasure, beginning to move, Amelia moaning and whimpering below him. As he continued, both of their breaths quickly grew labored, Cassius making a trail of kisses down her neck to her breasts, making her come even more unhinged. His right hand moved its thumb to her clit and she began to cry out in pleasure. Not that anyone would hear. The suite they were in was basically a penthouse, and was the only one on that floor.

After a few more minutes, Amelia arched off the bed as she climaxed and Cassius grunted, the undulating of her tunnel's walls pushing him over the edge as well. He pulled out at the last second, finishing onto her stomach and breasts. He lay beside Amelia as she panted and gasped for breath, smiling.

"That was amazing," Amelia smiled, then frowned. "We shouldn't have done that. My husband may not be perfect, but he's still my husband."

"Why not leave him?" Cassius asked. "You're not happy, and you shouldn't live in misery out of duty. You should follow your heart, and do what you want to do."

Amelia was silent for a long while. "Maybe. But...what would I do?"

"What do you want to do?" Cassius asked.

"I want to be with you," Amelia said. "You make me so happy. Hapoier than I've been in years. Would...would you wait for me? If I left him?"

"Of course," Cassius said.

Amelia smiled and kissed him, then stood. "I need to get cleaned up, and you need to leave. How will I meet you when it's done?"

Cassius picked up her phone from the bedside table and entered his phone number. "Call me after."

Amelia nodded and kissed him again before heading to the bathroom. As she did, Cassius got dressed, throwing Amelia's clothes into a dirty clothes basket for her, then opened and closed the door. He lifted himself into the rafters with his goo and hid himself in the shadows, then waited. It was nearly three in the morning before the target arrived. He staggered in, failing to close the door properly, though his bodyguard closed it for him, staying outside, then staggered into the bedroom, passing out on the bed. Amelia was asleep beside him, but when he dropped onto the bed, she woke and promptly left the room, heading to the living room and laying on the couch. Cassius waited thirty minutes for Amelia to fall asleep, then dropped and walked into the bedroom and rested his hand over the target's mouth. Then, he sent goo into the man's throat, expanding it and blocking off his arteries.

After about twenty seconds, he retracted the goo and checked for a pulse. Nothing. He turned, walking outside and to a balcony where there was a second pool. Once outside, he closed the door behind himself and jumped off the edge, forming a glider from his goo. He drifted through the city unnoticed for about half a mile before landing in a parking garage where Cain was waiting.

"Well done," Cain said. "The superiors will be impressed. But why did you give her your number."

"If she calls me when she finds out he's dead, she doesn't know it's me," Cassius said. "Then I change my phone and number, and the evidence is gone."

Cain was silent for a moment before nodding. "Smart thinking. And if she does suspect you?"

"I'll kill her too," Cassius shrugged. "I gave her a fake name anyway."

"Good," Cain nodded. "Come on. We need to get back."

Cassius nodded and they got into the black SUV they were using for the assignment, leaving the parking garage and heading home.

* * *

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	6. Chapter 6

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

New Tricks

Cassius walked calmly out of the hotel room, leaving Amelia's body lying in the bed. However, as soon as he stepped outside, he stopped, finding several men in black clothes with black masks around him, Cain stsnding in front of them.

"Loose ends?" Cassius asked.

"Loose ends," Cain nodded.

"Shame this end doesn't feel like being tied," Cassius said. "I still don't remember anything, and I'm not dying until I know who I am."

"Lucky for you, that's not why I'm here," Cain said, drawing his pistols and shooting the Shadows around him. "Come. I've been ordered by Ra's al Ghul to turn you over to Deathstroke's custody."

"What a promotion," Cassius snorted. "Beaten and abused by you to beaten to death by him."

"Deathstoke rarely kills his subbordinates," Cain says. "He's also one of the greatest fighters alive."

"Well, at least I'll get really good at fighting," Cassius shrugged. "Lead the way."

Cain nodded and turned, walking away from the hotel, Cassius following with the corpses.

* * *

Cassius deflected Deathstroke's staff with his own and slammed his goo fist into Deathstroke's chest. He flipped, landing on his feet only to dive forward just before tendrils of goo erupted out of it. Then, as Deathstroke was standing, Cassius swiped upward at his head with his bo staff. Deathstroke spun around it and slammed his own into the side of Cassius's head, dropping him, all of his goo retracting.

"Damn," Cassius groaned. "Thought I had you that time."

"Maybe," Deathstroke said. "But in combat, almost doesn't matter. Close only counts in handgrenades and internal damage. Either you win, or you lose. There is no almost, and there is no tying."

"Trust me, I know," Cassius said, pushing himself up. "Again."

"As you wish."

* * *

Cassius walked along the street toward his target. Easy job. Kill the target and implicate another Shadow. So, as he neared the man, he formed his goo into the shape of said Shadow's blade, and drove it through the target's abdomen. Then, he retracted his goo less than a second later and continued walking without having broken his stride, getting lost in the crowd instantly as the man collapsed. People swarmed the man to save him, but Cassius didn't mind. He had made sure to sever the man's spinal cord. He was finished.

"Well done," Deathstroke's voice said into his communicator. "On to the next."

* * *

Cassius flipped over Deathstroke's blades and landed on his feet, a dozen goo spikes stabbing at Deathstroke from all sides, forcing him toward Cassius. Deathstroke twisted and his right blade clased with Cassius's hardened goo blade, currently his go-to kind was a double-edged one, before Deathstroke's left sword split Cassius up the front. Cassius'sgoo retracted before he hit the ground and he groaned, healing.

"Better," Deathstroke said. "But you need to move faster."

"Understood," Cassius nodded, standing. "Again."

* * *

Cassius groaned as he stepped into the main room. His whole body ached. Suddenly, Deathstroke landed in front of him, slashing, only for Cassius to block it with one goo fist, then slam the other into Deathstroke's chest. Deathstroke flipped and landed on his feet, cocking his head to the side.

"Cassius?" Deathstroke asked.

"Who the hell else would I be?" Cassius asked, noticing his voice was wheezier, and fralier than it should be.

Deathstroke tossed him a mirror and Cassius caught it, staring at his reflection. He was ancient. He had grey hair, a sunken face, pale skin, and green eyes. He blinked, then focused, his eyes turning blue, his hair blond, his skin tightening and gaining a deep tan. In an instant, he was a completely different person, then another, a ginger with freckles and grey eyes. Then, out of pure curiosity, he was a blonde girl with bright blue eyes. He reached down and hummed thoughtfully, impressed that he actually seemed to have gotten it right.

"Interesting," Deathstroke mused. "This is good. This opens up entirely new possibilities for jobs we can send you on."

_This also makes it impossible to find out who I was before,_ Cassius thought, changing back to what he thought was his original form. "It's only as useful as I make it."

"Good, you're learning," Deathstroke said. "Let's go. It's time to train."

Cassius nodded and followed him out of the .

* * *

Cassius stared at his reflection as his body finished changing. He knew this form. It was the one from the family portrait of the woman he had killed along with her children. But it felt familiar. He had a sinking feeling he knew why.

The door beside him hissed as it began to open, and by the time it was done, Cassius had red hair and a scar across one eye, his nose crooked, and a tooth missing.

"You're getting better," Deathstroke said. "Come. You've got another job."

Cassius nodded and followed Deathstroke out of the room.

* * *

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	7. Chapter 7

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Information and Training

Cassius batted Deathstroke aside with a backhanded slap of his right goo hand, which he had expanded to the size of Deathstroke's body. He spun, catching Cain's right arm and swung him around, slamming him into Lady Shiva, then ducked as Deathstroke slashed at him again. Then, he bent forward and a third goo arm sprouted from his back, slamming into Deathstroke and hurling him away. He stood up straight again in time to form a sword from his goo, once again going with a double-edged one, and blocked Lady Shiva's blade. She smirked as Cain stepped up behind Cassius, only for a second face to suddenly grow from the back of Cassius's head, made out of goo but with a pair of real eyes and its own set of arms, which it promptly used to snatch away Cain's knife, then hurl him into Deathstroke.

Lady Shiva shoved his sword aside and slashed upward at him, only for him to catch her arm with his free hand and spin, hurling her into the other two as they were standing. Then, he swung his arms across his body, sending a dozen goo spikes stabbing into the ground around the three of them, all three pushing themselves up and nodding approvingly.

"You've improved more than I expected," Cain said as Cassius pulled the goo spikes back to himself, reabsorbing it and the goo he'd formed the second body with.

"I agree," Lady Shiva nodded. "It's rare to find someone who can outfight all three of us at once."

"His potential is frightening," Deathstroke said. "However, this wasn't meant to be a combat test. Your objective was to get past us with stealth, so you still failed."

"Understood," Cassius nodded.

Deathstroke dismissed him, and Cassius walked away, passing through the hallways of their current hideout, a cave in a cliff below a mansion that Deathstroke owned, until he finally reached the exit. A few moments of using his goo to scale the cliff later, and he was walking through the hallways of the mansion. He didn't mind living in the mansion. It was easy to disappear from Deathstroke in between missions and training there. However, it wasn't exactly a pleasant environment. Not that it didn't have its other uses. Namely, he was able to make secure calls and search the dark web without even Deathstroke knowing about it. As he did as soon as he reached his room, having a data-mining program running on his computer to search for any information on the tan-skinned, blond-haired man he had seen once in a family portrait, once in a mirror when he learned he could shapeshift, and dozens of times in his dreams in the months since then. Then, he called one of his contacts.

"Now's not a good time," was the contact's greeting.

"Would you prefer to tell me what you've found face-to-face?" Cassius asked.

"Oh don't give me that!" the contact snapped. "You know I'm the only one who could possibly find out what you want to know."

"Not the only one, no," Cassius said. "Just the most convenient and the only one that I don't have to get hands-on with, unless you would like me to hang up."

The contact sighed. "You're a real charmer, you know that? Alright, look. The picture you sent me...that guy is a missing person report in the police department of the city you listed by name. I don't know how you got that picture, and I don't want to. I don't know who the guy is yet, I don't know who he knew besides his family, who are all dead, and I don't know if he had any connection to any of the uninvolved parties you mentioned. I'm still looking into it."

"Look faster," Cassius said.

"I'm just one guy," the contact said. "I may be me, but I can only do so much. It'll take time, but I _will_ get you your information. Just make sure you keep your end of the deal."

"Of course," Cassius said. "As I said, quid pro quo. You find me the information, and I'll forget what I know about you, your wife, your mistress, and your three adorable little girls. Just make it quick."

"I will," the contact said, then hung up.

Cassius set his phone down and turned back to the computer, watching the data mine find absolutely nothing, as always.

"That's an interesting face to be looking into," Lady Shiva said, suddenly leaning down beside him to inspect the image his program was searching for, hands resting on his shoulders. "Why are you looking for him?"

"Because I have yet to remember who I am, and I keep seeing this face in my dreams," Cassius said, turning his computer chair around. "What do you want?"

"Is there any way I could help?" Lady Shiva asked. "Contacts, stories about old jobs, entertainment while you wait?"

"No thanks," Cassius said, turning back to the computer. "Not interested."

"Oh?" Lady Shiva asked. "Well, that might actually make you the first person I've met to turn me down."

"You'll get over it," Cassius said.

"Any particular reason?" Lady Shiva asked.

"I'm not interested in sleeping with the same person as Cain," Cassius said. "You _did_ have his kid, right?"

Lady Shiva narrowed her eyes slightly. "Not willingly. You sure you're not interested? I don't exactly offer myself to just anyone without it costing them something."

"Don't make it sound like I haven't already been cost something," Cassius said. "Years of agony while you and Cain did your damnedest to kill me, then when I got good enough to keep you from doing it, you gave me to Deathstroke to do the same fucking thing. Then when I grew beyond that, the three of you started doing it together. I've been paying in blood since the day I woke up on that island. And in all these years, you still haven't done a damn thing to help me remember who I am, who that girl was, or how I got on that island."

Lady Shiva was silent for a long while before dropping into his lap. "You're right. We _did_ promise to help you, didn't we? I had nearly forgotten. Alright, I'll make you a deal. Accept my offer, and I'll tell you who that face belongs to. I'll tell you who it was you suffocated with her children, and who the girl that died getting you off the island was."

"Why do you want to fuck me so badly?" Cassius asked.

"Because you are powerful and unique," Lady Shiva said. "Call it curiosity. I want to know if your fighting is your _only_ skill. I may be a Shadow, but I'm still human."

Cassius stared at her for a moment before rolling his eyes. "Fine. But if you don't tell me what I want to know, I'll force it out of you. And Deathstroke has made me very good at applying pain to acquire information."

"Deal," Lady Shiva smiled. "Now, lock the door while I get ready."

She stood and Cassius shot a blast of goo out of his palm, coating the door and sealing it shut. Lady Shiva rolled her eyes before reaching up and opening her dress, letting it fall to the ground. Cassius sighed heavily, resting his cheek on his fist, a bored expression on his face.

"Any day," Cassius said, his clothes transforming into goo and sinking into his body.

Lady Shiva raised an eyebrow before laying on the bed and spreading her legs, beckoning him to her.

* * *

Cassius stared at the image. A hero. The man was a hero. A thorn in the League of Shadows' side. He had taken out dozens of their members, raided a half-dozen of their bases. And then, he had been taken out himself. Two Shadows had been sent to deal with him. One by the name of Alpha, and one by the name of Lady Shiva. He had been surprised when she said she was there when they went after him. However, he was only slightly less surprised when she admitted they hadn't killed him. Alpha had thought he was dead, and Lady Shiva reported him as such. But then she had had David Cain help her take him to an unnamed island where they gave him to a scientist who claimed to be able to give humans powers in order to make more effective assassins. They had hired a mercenary named Deadshot to monitor the experiment and make sure that no one left the island with any knowledge of the experiment. Cassius wasn't overly surprised to find out he was the man he was seeing.

The girl he'd saved from being raped as soon as he had woken up had been his sister, apparently, also a hero and one who had somehow tracked him down and snuck onto the island without Deadshot knowing about it to save him, but was captured, though Lady Shiva didn't know how. The family Cassius had killed had, as he had suspected, been his wife and children.

"So, does knowing who you once were, and who you killed, change anything?" Lady Shiva asked as she finished putting her dress back on.

Cassius stared at the picture for another moment before stopping his data mine program and shutting down his computer. "No. Whoever I was before, I'm not him anymore. I haven't been since I lost my memory."

"Good," Lady Shiva nodded. "I'm glad you're able to think about it so reasonably. And I'm glad I called Deadshot off when he reported you were escaping."

"I see," Cassius nodded. "I was wondering why he only ever shot at me once."

Lady Shiva nodded. "I'll leave you to your thoughts."

She left and he sighed, sending a text to his contact that their deal was done, as he'd found the information he needed, promising to keep his end of the deal. Then, he walked over and lay on his bed, the sheets all being balled up on the floor. He raised a hand, forming his goo around it, humming thoughtfully. He couldn't help but wonder if anyone in the Justice League had known him before. Or if he had had any powers before, like his sister's ability to turn objects into bombs.

Someone pounded on the door suddenly. "Mission."

Cassius stood, walking over and opening the door, following Deathstroke away from his room.

* * *

He stared at Cain in silence. This wasn't the kind of mission he'd been expecting. Cain wanted him to train Cain and Lady Shiva's daughter, Cassandra. He had worded it as a request, but it obviously wasn't.

"Why do you bother to phrase it like a question?" Cassius finally asked.

"Let me rephrase it, then," Cain said. "You're _going_ to train my daughter. Deathstroke has given his permission, so long as you're allowed to go on missions in between."

"I see," Cassius said. "Fine. Care to introduce me?"

"Sure," Cain nodded. "This way."

He led Cassius through the building to a sparring room where Cassandra, barely six years old, was fighting against a man in a suit, Alpha, as Cain introduced him. Cassandra was doing well, but was only barely able to hold her own against the man. Finally, Cain called him off and Cassius walked forward, taking Alpha's place.

"My name's Cassius," Cassius said. "I'll be training you from now on, whenever I have the time."

Cassandra nodded mutely.

"It's polite to greet people back when they speak to you," Cassius said.

"Cassandra doesn't know how to speak," Cain said. "All she's been taught since she was born was how to fight. And thanks to Lady Shiva being the mother, Cassandra inherited her mother's ability to read body language like a literal language, allowing her to predict others actions before they can strike."

"Useful," Cassius nodded. "Very well."

He stepped forward, throwing a kick at her and she ducked under it before he spun, punching at her. She blocked it, throwing one of her own but he stepped back out of her reach before sweeping her legs out from under her. As she stood, she readied herself to go again, Cassius doing the same.

* * *

Cassius spun, hurling Cassandra, who crashed down on her shoulders, rolling onto her feet with ease, and charged again. He smirked. She was improving quickly. He blocked several strikes before throwing one of his own, Cassandra catching it and hurling him. However, he flipped in the air and when she moved in to finish it, he intercepted her and pinned her tot he ground.

He let her up and she nodded as thanks. Then, they headed to the library, Cassius beginning to teach her sign language and how to read and write, specifically because he knew Cain would be pissed at him if he ever found out. Cassandra loved the classes. They were the highlight of her training with him. And she was a quick study with the sign language, for obvious reasons. Finally, after a few hours, he sent her to bed and headed to his own room.

* * *

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	8. Chapter 8

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Investigating

Cassius watched as Deathstroke sparred with his daughter. Finding out Deathstroke had a daughter, by the name of Rose Wilson, was probably the most shocking thing he'd ever learned. He just didn't seem the type to ever give two shits about anything besides fighting and money. Certainly never about family. And yet, he could tell that Deathstroke actually did care about Rose. It was in the way he beat her even more severely than Cassius to make her stronger. The way every time he beat her he would tell her what a disappointment she was. And it was in the way he had given her a suit identical to his own after the first time she killed someone. Truly, he was the father of the year.

Rose was about the same age as Cassandra, though nowhere near as skilled. Cassius had offered to help Deathstroke train her, but Deathstroke had refused, saying that she would learn from him alone. So, Cassius didn't offer again. If he didn't want him to help, he wouldn't.

"Cassius!" Deathstroke called, Cassius dropping to the ground floor. "You've been given an assignment. A facility owned by one of our benefactors has gone dark. You're being sent to find out what happened, and to report what they have been working on. Avoid being seen if you can, and if you can't, adapt to the situation as necessary."

"Understood," Cassius nodded. "Where is the facility?"

"It's Cadmus Labs," Deathstroke said. "Washington D.C."

Cassius nodded and turned, walking away, leaving for Cadmus immediately, since he didn't need anything for his assignments, being able to form clothes from his goo, not needing to worry about a shower, and never taking long enough to need food.

* * *

Cassius watched as first Kid Flash, the sidekick of Flash from the Justice League, then Robin, Batman's sidekick, and lastly Aqualad, sidekick of the Justice League's Aquaman, slipped into the building through the second story window, ignoring the fire. Aqualad _did_, however, stop to save two workers who were trapped on the roof after Kid Flash threw them there when he caught them on the way up the wall to the window the pair fell out. Cassius slipped around to the back of the building and entered through the roof at the back of the building, where there was no fire and no one watching. He hid himself just outside the building's main hallway as the three sidekicks forced their way into one of the elevators, then jumped in, descending using Robin's grappling hook. Cassius frowned. Why take the elevator of a two-story building?

He walked over, looking down the elevator and instantly understood. It wasn't two stories. The elevator they'd taken extended down well below the ground, darkness obscuring the hallway after the first fifty feet past ground floor. He hummed thoughtfully and extended a strand of goo from his hand, attaching it to the ceiling and beginning to descend, careful not to touch the grappling line. After a few minutes, he stopped at the end of the grappling line, sublevel twenty six. He looked down at the darkness.

"How deep is this place?" he mumbled, then swung forward into the open elevator door, retracting his goo.

He took three steps into the room on the far side, a long room opening into a "T" shaped hallway ahead and lined with machines, before a foot struck the side of his leg at more than a hundred miles an hour, breaking his leg. He flipped, landing hard just in time for Aqualad to pin him, holding a blade made of water, controlled through one of his two hilt-like devices created for the purpose of forming weapons from water, to his throat.

"I will only ask one time," Aqualad said. "Who are you? What were those things just now? And what are you doing here?"

"Well, if you're only asking once, this should be easy," Cassius said, slamming his knees into Aqualad, throwing him off and allowing him to stand, blocking Robin's punch and swinging him around into Kid Flash's path, tripping him up.

Both crashed to the ground and Cassius ducked out of the way of Aqualad's fist, drilling his own into his chest and sending him staggering away.

"In order, you may call me Null," Cassius said. "I have no idea what things you were talking about, and I'm here to satisfy curiosity."

"How are you standing?" Kid Flash asked. "I felt your leg break."

"I healed," Cassius said.

"Bullshit," Kid Flash said. "In less than ten seconds? What other powers do you have?"

"I don't know what you mean," Cassius said. "Anyway, I've got no time to deal with you. I'm on a bit of a time crunch. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go ahead and take a look around now."

"Hold it!" Robin said, stepping into his path. "We're not done!"

"Yes, you are," Cassius said. "If you really want to find out more about me, help me figure out what's going on here. Then, I'll tell you a bit about myself after."

The other three looked around at one another before all nodding. "Okay. Sure."

Cassius nodded and turned, walking to the hallway and looking around. "So what things were you talking about?"

"Giant creatures," Aqualad said. "Grey skin, horns, posture of gorillas but standing twenty feet tall. One of them had a small creature with similar grey skin but a head the size of its body, small horns, and small arms and legs on it and when the small one looked at us, its horns glowed red for a moment."

"I see," Cassius nodded. "Interesting. "Which way'd they go?"

"Right," Robin said, Cassius heading in that direction. "Hey, where are you going!?"

"I wanna see the giant monsters," Cassius shrugged. "Like I said, I'm here to see what's going on."

They looked around at each other before following. After a few minutes, and Robin hacking them through several doors, they finally reached a large room filled with tanks, each lit by a stream of electricity and holding what looked like some kind of giant bug. They had glowing abdomens, long, curved, blade-like legs, and four small, spike-like wings.

"I am officially whelmed," Robin said.

"And illiterate, apparently," Cassius said, walking into the room, hands in his pockets as he looked around at the tanks.

"This is how they hide this massive underground facility from the world," Kid Flash realized, walking along the left row of tanks. "The real Cadmus isn't on the grid! It generates its own power with these...things. Must be what they're bred for."

"Even the name is a clue," Aqualad said. "The Cadmus of myth created a new race by sewing dragons' teeth into the earth."

"And this Cadmus creates new life too," Robin said, walking over to a computer off to the side. "Let's find out why." He pulled a cord out of his left gauntlet, plugging it into the computer while Cassius leaned against a tank, waiting for the three children to do his job for him. "They call them...genomorphs." He had a small holographic screen hovering over his gauntlet. "Whoa! Look at the stats on these things. Super strength, telepathy, razor claws. These are living weapons!"

_Interesting, _Cassius thought. _I wonder how many it would take to kill a Shadow. I wonder how many I'd have to send to kill Cain, Shiva, and Deathstroke. Probably the whole army knowing those three. And even then it'd probably not be enough. Hm. I'd probably get Cassandra and Rose caught up in the mess too. Probably best to let it be._

"They're engineering an army, but for who?" Kid Flash asked.

"Wait!" Robin said, pulling up a file. "There's something else. Project Kr. Ugh. The file's triple encrypted. I can't-"

"Don't move!" a voice ordered, Cassius instantly stepping backward behind some of the tanks, then launching himself to the ceiling with his goo.

He moved where he could see, his goo keeping him stuck to the ceiling and allowing him to watch from his concealed position as several small goblin-like creatures, each of which stood about waist-height, had white-grey skin, pointed ears, tails, and the stature of monkeys, ran in, along with a man wearing a black shirt with blue armor on the shoulders and chest, black pants, a gold shield over his left forearm, a gold helmet, with a half-mask and a chinstrap, and a small version of the creatures on his shoulder, this one with black stripes on its head and small black horns.

"Wait, Robin?" the man asked. "Aqualad? Kid Flash?"

"At least he got the name right," Robin said.

"I know you," Aqualad said. "Guardian. A hero."

"I do my best," Guardian said.

"Then what are you doing here?" Kid Flash asked.

"I'm chief of security," Guardian said. "You're trespassing, but we can call the Justice League, figure this out."

"You think the league's going to approve of you breeding weapons?" Kid Flash asked.

"Weapons?" Guardian asked. "What are you-"

The tiny creature on his shoulder turned its head toward him, its horns suddenly glowing red, and Guardian stiffened.

"What have I...my head," he said, holding a hand to his head for a moment before glaring. "Take 'em down hard! No mercy!"

_Don't mind if I do,_ Cassius thought, dropping to the ground and launching himself out of cover, retracting the goo before the others saw him and drilling a punch into Guardian's jaw, sending him crashing into the wall, the little imp from his shoulder crashing into it above him, both being knocked out instantly. The five creatures that had been with Guardian leapt at him but he easily took them all down, even without his goo, finishing in seconds just as an alarm began to scream.

"Whoa!" Kid Flash gaped. "Dude's good!"

"You coming?" Cassius asked, turning and running out of the room.

The other three followed, heading back to the elevator where Robin hacked the door open. They all stepped inside as more creatures began to charge them from the hallway. Cassius closed the doors, waving at them pleasantly as the doors hissed shut.

"So, where to, Boy Wonder?" Cassius asked.

"Up and out," Kid Flash said, only for Robin to hit the button for sublevel fifty two.

"We're headed down?" Aqualad asked.

"Project Kr?" Cassius asked.

"Bingo," Robin nodded.

"This is out of control," Aqualad said. "Perhaps...perhaps we should contact the league."

"Pussy," Cassius snorted.

"Excuse me?" Aqualad asked.

"What's wrong?" Cassius asked. "Can't handle your first real mission without training wheels, sidekick? Gotta cry for help from the _real_ heroes as soon as things get tough?"

"No I..." Aqualad was silent for a moment before taking a deep breath. "You are right. We came here to investigate, the same as you. So we will do so."

"Good," Cassius said. "By the way, Robin, did you happen to find out what caused that explosion? Or if this base reports to anyone?"

"No," Robin said. "The explosion upstairs was probably nothing major. From what I saw, everything up there is basically fake anyway. As far as who, if anyone, this place reports to, I got nothing."

"Maybe the guy in charge has communication logs, or progress updates with their boss," Cassius said.

"You are assuming there even _is_ a boss," Aqualad said.

"Yeah," Cassius said. "Assuming. Sure. Let's go with that."

All three narrowed their eyes at him, only to spin to the door as it dinged open. Outside the door, there was no building. It was a cave made from reddish-brown rock with pipes running here and there. They all rushed into cover, Cassius waiting to see which way the three sidekicks went so he could go the other way. However, before he could, a tall, humanoid creature stepped out, this one with light blue-grey skin, tall horns that stuck out from his forehead a few inches before bending upward for about six inches, and a white shirt and pants like you might expect a scientist to wear.

"Hold!" the creature said, then raised his hands, his horns glowing as a pair of small barrels in front of him rose into the air.

With a flick of his wrist, the creature sent the barrels flying at them, the three sidekicks avoiding them and allowing them to explode against the wall. Robin threw a round, sharpened disk at the creature, but it stopped just in front of the creature's head, then fell as the creature hurled more barrels at the three, who retreated into the hallway the creature hadn't come from. once they were gone, Cassius waited, the creature looking directly toward him.

"You are not like those three," the creature said. "Who are you?"

"Names are pointless," Cassius said. "I represent someone who's highly interested in Project Cadmus, but who recently stopped receiving any communication from it. I was sent to find out why, and to report all of Cadmus's pet projects. For instance, yourself, it would seem."

"I see," the creature said. "If that is the case, follow me." He turned, walking away, and Cassius followed, preparing himself to form his goo at a moment's notice.

* * *

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	9. Chapter 9

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Answers

Cassius remained silent as he read through the project reports and sifted through the images of various creatures. He glanced at the tall horned creature every few seconds, making sure he wasn't about to be attacked, but as he read through the projects, there was nothing to indicate why they had stopped reporting, or what Project Kr was.

"What about Project Kr?" Cassius asked.

"That report is still being prepared," the creature said. "As is Project Match."

"And why have the reports not been sent recently?" Cassius asked.

"There has been nothing new to report," the creature said. "We did not believe a report was necessary."

"It was," Cassius said flatly. "Where's the scientist in charge?"

"He is gathering the reports on Projects Kr and Match personally, as they are our two most important projects," the creature said.

Cassius narrowed his eyes, but just as he stood to walk out of the room, the door hissed open. Except, instead of the head scientist, a boy of about sixteen stepped inside, wearing a white bodysuit with a Superman symbol on its chest and a face looking like that of a younger superman stepped inside, face set into a scowl and eyes fixed on Cassius.

"Allow me to introduce you to Project Kr," the creature said, stepping backward as his horns began to glow red.

The boy shot forward in a blur throwing a punch at Cassius, only for Cassius's goo hand to catch it, his left slamming an uppercut into the obvious clone's jaw, launching him into the ceiling. The clone exploded off of the ceiling back down at Cassius and Cassius again caught his fist, the ground cratering this time, but as he did, a barrel of some kind suddenly crashed into Cassius's side, launching him away before exploding, the clone escaping the blast but Cassius being knocked unconscious by it.

* * *

Cassius groaned, opening his eyes and looking around slowly. The Superman clone was standing in front of his pod, which was in a line of four with the other sidekicks.

"I live because of Cadmus!" the clone was shouted. "Cadmus is my home!"

"Your home is a test tube," Robin said. "We can show you the sun."

"I'm...pretty sure it's after midnight," Kid Flash said. "but we can show you the moon."

"We can show you..._introduce_ you to Superman," Aqualad said.

The clone's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to respond, only for the door to hiss open.

"No, they can't," a scientist with a small g-gnome on his shoulder said as he walked in with a female assistant and Guardian, both of whom also had a g-gnome on their shoulders. "They'll be otherwise occupied."

"You must be the head scientist," Cassius said.

"Hey, he's awake!" Kid Flash said. "Bout time."

"When I get out of this thing, I'm going to rip you apart piece by piece," Cassius said.

"I highly doubt that," the man said. "Your employers wouldn't be very happy about that, considering everything I've done has been according to their orders."

Cassius's eyes widened before narrowing again. "Bullshit! What kind of half-assed lie is that?"

"What employers?" Robin asked.

"Oh, you mean you don't know?" the scientist asked. "Your friend there is an enforcer for the League of Shadows."

"WHAT!?" all three sidekicks gaped.

"Oh chill the fuck out," Cassius said. "I wasn't going to hurt any of you. I was sent to investigate Cadmus, not kill children. This time, at least."

"Activate the cloning process," the head scientist said.

"Pass," Robin said. "Batcave's crowded enough."

"And get the weapon back in its pod!" the scientist snapped at Guardian.

"Damn," Cassius snorted. "No love for clones, huh? You just gonna take that, Superkid?"

"It's Superboy," the clone said as Guardian set a hand on his shoulder.

"Help us," Aqualad said.

Superboy shrugged Guardian's hand off, glaring at him.

"Don't start thinking now!" the head scientist snapped as the g-gnome jumped from his shoulder to Superboy's, his horns glowing. "See, you're not a _real_ boy, you're a weapon. And you belong to me!"

"Hey, Doc," Cassius said, forming himself a new set of goo arms and legs outside the restraints before retracting the first. "Leave Pinocchio alone. He may not be a real boy, but he's not a weapon." He punched the glass with his right fist encased in goo and the two halves of the pod's hatch exploded off of the pod, crashing into the far wall, one of them slamming into Guardian on the way.

"Void!" Robin shouted. "Shit!"

"Nice to properly meet you, sidekicks," Cassius said, stepping out of the pod. "Now then. What was it I said? Rip you apart piece by piece?"

"Kill him!" the scientist ordered Superboy, who turned toward him, snarling.

"Superboy!" Aqualad shouted. "You live! You have the right to choose which path you follow! Weapon or boy! The choice is yours!"

Superboy roared and leapt at Cassius, who extended a third arm to send the g-gnome exploding into the wall, hopefully killing it. His two main arms caught Superboy's, the ground cratering as more goo attached Cassius's legs to the ground.

"Ask yourself!" Aqualad tried again. "What would Superman do?"

Superboy's eyes widened and he eased off his strength. Cassius released him carefully before Superboy stepped back, looking at the other three. Cassius turned to the woman at the pods' controls.

"I'd appreciate it if you'd step away from there," Cassius said.

She scrambled away from the controls instantly and Cassius formed a goo spike from his right arm, stabbing it into the controls, ruining them and keeping them from making any more clones without replacing the control system. As he did, Robin's restraints suddenly clocked open and he pushed his pod open, dropping to the ground.

"Ugh, finally," Robin said. "Lucky Batman isn't here. He'd have my head for taking so long."

"Really?" Kid Flash asked. "That's what you're worried about? The whole League'll have our heads after tonight."

"Not if I take theirs first," Cassius said, extending goo from his arm to open Kid Flash's pod, then ripped the restraints off.

"Don't you start, Void!" Robin said. "You're going to be going to prison as soon as we're out of here."

Cassius laughed. "I would honestly love to see you try that. It took three Justice League members, including Batman and Superman both, to catch me the first time, and I just walked out after I woke up."

"You'll never get away!" the head scientist said. "I'll have you back in pods by morning!"

"These pods?" Cassius asked, jabbing a thumb at the three just as four stands of goo shot out of his back, whipping downward onto the pods and crushing them instantly. "Good luck with that."

The good retracted, then another shot out of his chest, forming a fist and drilling a punch into the scientist's jaw, dropping him.

"Surprised you didn't kill him," Robin said as the five of them jogged out of the room and back toward the elevator.

"I'm not going to deny the Shadows their enjoyment of punishing traitors when they find out he tried to have me cloned and disposed of," Cassius said.

"Didn't he say that he was following their orders?" Robin asked.

"What if _the Shadows_ were the ones who betrayed _you_?" Aqualad asked.

"Then that was a mistake," Cassius said. "But I'll deal with that personally later. Where are we?"

"Sublevel forty two," Robin said, the holographic screen from his gauntlet fading. "The elevator should be up ahead."

They all skidded to a stop as massive g-gnomes with the stature of gorillas stepped into the far end of the hallway. They turned, looking back along the hallways as the round white stones that lined the purplish rock of the passage began to glow red, the small, monkey-like g-gnomes crawling out of them like gestation pods, which Cassius realized, they were.

"I can kill these things, right?" Cassius asked, forming goo claws.

"No!" Aqualad said. "We need to go!"

Superboy roared in rage and leapt at one of the giant ones, punching it and instantly knocking it out as the others all ran past. Another punched downward at Superboy, smashing him into the ground and Cassius chuckled. However, he stopped as the passage shook, bits of stone falling from the ceiling. They turned, seeing him smash one of the giant g-gnomes into the wall, again shaking the tunnel.

"Superboy!" Aqualad shouted. "The goal is escape! Not bury ourselves here!"

"You want escape!?" Superboy shouted, then grabbed the unconscious g-gnome he'd punched first and hurled it into two more.

They all turned and continued to run toward the elevator, Superboy following. When they reached the elevator, Aqualad forced the doors open and Kid Flash darted to a spot he could stand inside as Robin fired his grappling gun up into the elevator and Cassius attached goo higher up, pulling himself up into the shaft. Then, just as a giant g-gnome reached the elevator, Superboy grabbed Aqualad and jumped into the elevator, seeming to fly for a moment before the momentum from his jump died out and he began to fall. Cassius sent goo up to form a net under them, catching both, before using a strand attached to it to bring himself up after them.

"Flight's out," Cassius said.

"Superman can fly," Superboy said. "Why can't I fly?"

"Dunno," Kid Flash said, having run up the wall to them. "But it looks like you _can_ leap tall buildings in a single bound. Still cool."

"Thank you," Superman said dejectedly.

"Guys!" Robin said as the elevator started down toward them. "This'll have to be our exit!"

Cassius raised a hand catching the elevator with a second goo net as Superboy punched the door open. They all got out and Cassius pulled all of his goo back to himself. he looked at the wall and whistled. He hadn't realized they'd gone up so far. They were now on sublevel fifteen.

"Hell of a jump," Cassius said.

Suddenly, G-gnomes began to swarm into the far end of the tunnel and they all took off, running down the left hallway. However, after a minute, Superboy suddenly shouted for Kid Flash, who was in the lead, to turn left. They all turned left, then right, only to find a dead end with a vent.

"Oh great!" Kid Flash said. "Great direction-giving Supey! Are you _trying_ to get us repodded?"

"No, I...I don't understand," Superboy said.

"Don't apologize!" Robin said. "This is perfect!"

Cassius extended his legs, pulling the grate out of the vent and stepped out of the way, forming a goo staircase. "Everybody in, now!"

They all sprinted up the stairs and scrambled into the vent, then Cassius followed, retracting his goo before putting the vent back in and used his goo to quietly slide through the vent away from the opening, catching the others quickly. They took turn after turn quickly, but it was a maze.

"At this rate we'll _never_ get out!" Kid Flash hissed.

"Shut up kid," Cassius said. "You'll get us caught."

"Sh!" Superboy said. "Listen!"

Cassius turned his head back the way they came and nodded. They were being followed.

"Relax," Robin said. "I've got this."

They kept going, reaching an exit soon and dropping out, only for Robin to quickly pull up his arm's screen and begin typing. A few moments later, he chuckled as the screen displayed a video feed of the head scientist standing at a vent just as g-gnomes burst out of it onto him.

"What'd you do?" Cassius asked.

"I hacked the motion sensors," Robin smirked.

"Well played," Cassius said.

"There's still plenty of them between us and out," Kid Flash said, glancing at the stairs they had exited beside, pulling his goggles down. "But I've finally got room to move!"

He took off instantly, blurring up the stairs, and the others following. As the others ran up the stairwell, Cassius sent a strand of goo up to the roof, rising up the middle level with them, forming himself a goo hammock.

"Are you comfortable?" Robin asked.

"Very," Cassius said, glancing back. "You've got some tailing you."

Superboy stopped and stomped on a set of stairs they'd just left, breaking it free and dropping it. Then, they kept going. Finally, they left, just in time to see Kid Flash crash into a heavy bulk head and bounce backward.

"Smooth move, slick," Cassius said, walking past him.

"Can't hack this fast enough!" Robin said.

"Yeah, I think a straight forward approach might be better," Cassius said, setting his hands on the door and spreading goo out of them into the seam between them along the entire thing. Behind him, there was a deep growl as giant g-gnomes found them, but Superboy quickly dealt with them. Finally, Cassius shouted in effort, pulling his hands apart, the doors sparking along the top and bottom as they slid outward. However, as soon as he could see through the doors, he swore, retracting his goo and letting the doors slam closed again.

"What?" Kid Flash asked.

"Not that way," Cassius said. _What the fuck is Deathstroke doing here?_

"This way!" Robin said, kicking a door to the right open.

They all ran in, only to stop as they found dozens of g-gnomes, both small and giant, inside. All of their horns began to glow and Robin, Kid Flash, and Aqualad collapsed.

"Pussies," Cassius said, fighting off their control, thanks to the Shadows having taught him to resist mind control. He looked over at Superboy, who was staring at the humanoid g-gnome, whose horns were glowing still, and who was giving Cassius a look somewhere between impressed and distrustful. "You okay Superboy?"

Suddenly, Guardian's g-gnome's horns stopped glowing and it jumped off his shoulder, Guardian holding a hand to his head, groaning.

"What's...going on?" he asked as the others began to stir, looking around in confusion.

"I...choose...freedom!" Superboy said suddenly.

"Feels like...fog...lifting," Guardian said.

"Guardian?" Aqualad asked.

"Go," Guardian said. "I'll deal with Desmond."

"Hey, humanoid g-gnome," Cassius said. "Is there another way out? Or a way for you to tell us when a certain somebody isn't outside that door?"

"He has gone," the g-gnome said. "It is safe."

"Who?" Robin asked.

"Doesn't matter," Cassius said. "I just want you to know, if I open that door and he's still there, we are _all_ dead. Even you."

"How does _that_ not matter?" Kid Flash asked.

"You have my word, he has gone," the g-gnome said. "However, before you go, allow me to tell you the truth of your mission here. The League of Shadows have determined that you are too dangerous to be kept around. They sent you here to be clones and disposed of. Cadmus never stopped reporting on its progress. You were betrayed."

Cassius was silent for a long moment before gritting his teeth and clenching his fists. "Let's go."

"I think not!" the head scientist, Desmond, apparently, said from behind Guardian and the g-gnomes on that side, all of them parting to see him standing there with a test tube filled with a glowing blue liquid. "Project Blockbuster will give me the power to restore order to Cadmus!"

He drank the fluid in one gulp and began to spasm and groan in pain, his bones cracking and his tendons and muscles popping loudly before he fell to his knees. Then, his body began to expand his shirt and lab coat both exploding off of him as he shouted in pain, his voice _far_ deeper than before. He raised his head as his skin began to peel off his face, revealing grey flesh below it. His eyes turned black with red irises and he shouted in pain, sounding like a monster. Then, he stood, roaring as his flesh exploded off leaving a massive, muscular, grey-skinned, g-gnome body rivalling the giant g-gnomes for size with jagged, red, horizontal lines along his sides, claws, and tattered flesh still clinging to his head and neck.

"We should go," Cassius said.

Desmond turned toward them, panting and snarling, glare levelled at Cassius and Superboy. He grinned widely, and Guardian held his arms out.

"Everyone, back!" Guardian ordered.

"I wouldn't," Cassius warned, just as Guardian charged, being backhanded and sent flying. "Told you."

Superboy went next, drilling a punch into Desmond's head, only to receive one back. He slammed three more into Desmond before taking another hit and going skidding backward, spinning as he slid and remaining on his upper shoulders. Cassius sighed, then launched himself forward, his expanded goo right fist exploding into Desmond's jaw and sending him staggering sideways. Despond spun toward him and threw a punch, but Cassius ducked under it, forming a spike along his left hand, only for Aqualad to crash into him, tackling him backward.

"No!" Aqualad snapped. "You will _not_ kill him!"

"Get off me, sidekick!" Cassius snarled.

"If you fight with us, you will not kill him!" Aqualad said.

"Fine," Cassius said. "Now move!"

He shoved Aqualad aside just in time for his goo to forma pair of massive hands, catching Desmond's fists, which cratered the floor. Before he could worry about getting out of the way, Superboy slammed a punch into his jaw before Desmond roared, grabbing Superboy around the middle and leaping up through the floor. Cassius shoved himself to his feet with goo from his back before leaping after them, the other three following instantly. Just as the other three arrived, Desmond hurled Superboy at them, Cassius ducking under him and allowing him to crash into Aqualad. Cassius shot forward, his left fist streaking forward and extending, crashing into Desmond's face and sending him staggering backward. As he did, Cassius sank into his goo and then reformed his right arm, head, and the upper right side of his torso from the fist still in the air, slamming a punch into Desmond's face as he regrew the rest of his body, sending Desmond flying.

"Jesus!" Kid Flash gaped. "He's not even human!"

"Neither are the two people behind you," Cassius pointed out. "You going to stand around watching all day, or would you like to help out?"

Kid Flash sped forward, dropping into a slide as Desmond punched at him and stopping behind him. Desmond, having turned to watch, turned back to the front just in time for Superboy and Aqualad's fists to crash into his face, rocking him backward before Kid Flash raised his body into Desmond's legs' way, table-topping him and making him crash to the ground.

"Learned that one in kindergarten," Kid Flash grinned, standing as Robin flipped over him.

Robin hurled several sharpened disks, but Desmond battered them aside, rolling onto his arms, only for Cassius's expanded right foot to crash into his face, flipping him backward again. As he rolled onto his hands again, Superboy stepped up in front of him. He roared, lunging and picking Superboy up, slamming him into a pillar and damn-near shattering it before the two began to trade blows. However, after a moment, Superman looked dazed. Desmond pulled his right fist back again, only for a whip made of water to wrap around it from Aqualad. Desmond turned toward him just as Aqualad slammed a knee into his face, then landed on the pillar above Aqualad, the water turning into a morning star. However, Desmond caught it and hurled him aside. Then, Caius's two extended fists crashed into Desmond's chest, sending him flying. He bounced twice before flipping and landing on his feet, skidding to a stop.

"Dude, you've got some ridiculous power," Kid Flash said.

"So would Superboy if he'd been trained to use his power properly by assassins," Cassius said.

Desmond rose suddenly and swung an arm, smashing the pillar he'd used Superboy to damage before.

"Of course!" Robin said.

"On it!" Cassius said instantly.

He shot forward and formed a goo shield, allowing Desmond to punch it and send him speeding across the room before forming goo into a sphere around him and exploding through another pillar. A moment later, Kid Flash reached Block Buster and punched him, ripping the flesh still hanging from his face off.

"Got your nose!" Kid Flash said, then took off running, Desmond chasing him. He stopped by a pillar and turned toward Desmond. "Come and get me you incredible punk!"

Desmond roared, punching at him and hitting the pillar, only for debris from it exploding to slam into Kid Flash's back. Then, as Desmond roared and leapt at Kid Flash, two strands of goo suddenly attached to his chest, Cassius spinning and beginning to swing him around.

"Which one?" Cassius asked.

"Right of the exit facing outward!" Robin shouted.

Cassius released Desmond, sending him exploding through the pillar Robin had identified, retracting his goo back into his arms. "Which one next?"

Before Robin could answer, Aqualad and Superboy both smashed a pillar and Robin drew an "X" on the ground in chalk.

"Can you drop him on this when I say?" Robin asked.

"Easy," Cassius said, forming go around his right hand.

Aqualad covered the spot in water just as Kid Flash skidded across the water to a stop, Desmond just behind him. Cassius shot forward, his fist crashing into Desmond's face and flipping him backward onto his upper back before his lower body dropped back to the ground. Instantly, Aqualad set his hands down in the water, the black eel tattoos wrapping around his arms glowing blue before electricity raced across the water, arcing over Desmond's body as he roared in pain. Then, Robin shouted for them to run just as one of his small disks exploded in each of the remaining pillars, the building beginning to collapse. Before they could reach the exit, the ceiling above them began to fall. Superboy and Aqualad both tackled Kid Flash and Robin, but Cassius stood beside them, his goo forming a cage around them and caught the debris, protecting them.

"Thanks," Robin said.

"We did it," Aqualad said.

"Was there ever any doubt?" Robin asked, he and Kid Flash high-fiving, only for Kid Flash to groan, holding his side.

"Yes," Cassius said, using his goo to push the rubble out of the way, then retracting it.

"See?" Kid Flash asked, Superboy turning to him. "The moon."

Superboy looked up at it just as a tiny speck appeared in front of it, beginning to grow larger until it became a silhouette. Then, that became Superman. Cassius sighed, bracing himself for the beating he was going to receive.

"Oh, _and_ Superman," Kid Flash added. "Do we keep our promises, or what?"

As Superman landed, half a dozen more of the Justice League's heavy-hitters arrived as well. Shazam, Martian Manhunter, Zatara the magician, the robot Red Tornado. The only headache missing was Batman, but he was sure he'd be along. And then more began to arrive. Captain Atom, Hawkman, Wonder Woman, Hawkwoman, both Green Lanterns, Black Canary, Aquaman, Green Arrow, the Flash, and finally Batman. Everyone was here. The entire Justice League. Cassius sighed heavily as Batman glared at him. He held his arms out to be handcuffed, but no one moved. Finally, Superboy walked forward, toward Superman.

"Is that what I think it is?" Batman asked.

"He doesn't like being called an 'it,'" Kid Flash warned.

"I'm Superman's clone," Superboy said, angry that Superman was watching him with a disgusted glare.

The rest of the Justice League exchanged surprised looks.

"Start talking," Batman finally said. "And someone restrain Void."

Green energy appeared around him in a bubble instantly from both Green Lanterns and he sighed, sitting down inside the bubble. Robin and the other three sidekicks explained what had happened from their perspectives, as well as that Cassius had apparently been betrayed by the Shadows. Though, they left out Cassius having seen someone that he said could kill them all. Once everyone had explained, Martian Manhunter walked over to Cassius, Cassius feeling a faint tickling sensation at the back of his head as Martian Manhunter invaded his mind.

"What do you see?" Batman asked.

"Turmoil," Martian Manhunter said. "And pain. He is...confused. He doesn't know if he believes he was betrayed or not. But he bears us all no ill will, and has no intention of fighting anyone here."

"What do you want?" Batman asked Cassius.

Cassius was silent for a moment. "Revenge. If they really did betray me, I want to kill them all. Painfully. Except..." his head fell. "Except for two."

Batman looked to Martian Manhunter.

"Children," Martian Manhunter said. "The children of two Shadows, both of whom are being beaten bloody as training and, like Void, have never known a better life."

Batman was silent for a moment. "Heroes don't kill."

"I'm not a hero," Cassius said. "I've murdered almost as many people as you've put in prison. I'm an assassin. Regardless of how I feel now, or what I want, I've still committed crimes beyond counting."

Batman was silent for a moment before nodding to the Green Lanterns to release him. Instead, they took Desmond, along with a group to help escort him, before Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Green Lantern walked off to the side to discuss what had happened, as well as what to do with Cassius.

Finally, Superman walked over, stopping in front of Superboy, sighing. "We'll...figure something out for you. The League will. For now I'd...better make sure they get that Blockbuster creature squared away."

He turned and flew away as Batman walked over with the others.

"Cadmus _will_ be investigated," Batman said. "All fifty two levels. Let's make one thing clear-"

"You should have called," the Flash said.

"End results aside, we are not happy," Batman said. "You hacked Justice League systems, disobeyed direct orders, and endangered lives. You will _not_ be doing this again."

"I am sorry," Aqualad said, "but we will."

"Aqualad, stand down," Aquaman said.

"Apologies, my king," Aqualad said, holding a hand to his chest for a moment before lowering it. "But no. We did good work here tonight. The work you trained us to do. Together, on our own, we forged something powerful. Important."

"If this is about your treatment at the Hall, the three of you-" The Flash was cut off by his sidekick.

"The _five_ of us," Kid Flash corrected him. "And it's not."

"Batman, we're ready to use what you taught us," Robin said. "Or why teach us it at all?"

"Why let _them_ tell us what to do?" Superboy asked. "It's simple. Get on board, or get out of the way."

"I like this kid," Cassius said, now seated in a goo throne, his left ankle on his right knee, cheek resting on his left fist. "He's going to be a ton of fun later."

Batman glared at him, then looked to the others. Finally, he turned to Cassius directly. "In exchange for not throwing you in prison, you will stop killing."

"And why would I do that?" Cassius asked. "I told you what I wanted."

"Because if you do, we will help you track down and _capture_ the League of Shadows members who betrayed you," Batman said. "But you will do so on _Justice_ League terms."

Cassius was silent for a moment before standing, reabsorbing his goo throne. "We have a deal."

Batman nodded and turned. Follow me."

* * *

Cassius walked through his new home in silence, looking around. They were in a cave system in Mount Justice, the original headquarters of the Justice League, now the headquarters of the sidekick team, which he was a part of now. They had Red Tornado and Black Canary as babysitters, with Black Canary in charge of training, and both were ordered to keep a strict eye on Cassius. And the Martian Manhunter's niece, Miss Martian, had been tasked with searching his brain at regular intervals for any signs of being loyal to the League of Shadows.

Cassius stepped outside and walked over to the beach, away from where the Justice League had set up cameras and microphones to monitor him, without his knowledge, in their minds. He pulled out his phone and dialed a number he didn't want to call.

"Well well, I wasn't expecting you to contact us again," Deathstroke's voice said.

"I've successfully infiltrated the Justice League's new sidekick team," Cassius said. "They don't trust me, but they're giving me a probationary spot."

"You've done well," Deathstroke said.

"And yet, the Shadows tried to betray me," Cassius said. "So much for loyalty to the Shadows."

"If you know we betrayed you, why call?" Deathstroke asked.

"Because the Shadows are all I've known," Cassius said. "Now I'm trapped in the light, and it's too goddamn bright." He looked toward the cave. "If I act as the Shadows' mole, will the Shadows betray me again?"

"No," Deathstroke said. "I meant it when I said you'd done well. In infiltrating the Justice League, even through their sidekicks, you've made yourself too valuable an asset to be betrayed thrown away. So long as you remain loyal, you will be allowed to remain in place."

"Then we have a deal," Cassius said. "Tell Cain I'll stop by to train his little brat whenever I get the chance."

"And why would you do that?" Deathstroke asked.

"Because I'm hoping she kills him during training one day," Cassius said. "Everyone has their reasons for everything they do. I want to watch Cain and Lady Shiva die agonizing deaths. And I want to be there to enjoy it in person. So long as it allows me chances to work toward that, I will remain loyal to the Shadows."

Deathstroke chuckled, which made Cassius's skin crawl. "Very well. You'll be updating me directly. Don't get caught."

"Choke on your food and die," Cassius grumbled, then hung up. He sighed heavily. "Be careful kid. You don't have me around to take Cain's knife for you."

He turned, walking back into the caves, returning to his room.

* * *

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	10. Chapter 10

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Secrets

Cassius watched as the sidekicks quickly took down the thugs while Green Arrow's, as of recently, former sidekick, Speedy, sent arrows with concussion grenades in place of arrow heads into the thugs' boss, Brick, only for them to do nothing. Finally, Brick hurled a massive chunk of the ground at Speedy, only for Aqualad to split it in half and Speedy to fire a smoke arrow at him.

"The cave is perfect," Aqualad said. "It has everything the team will need."

"For covert missions," Robin said, landing behind Speedy. "Ya know, spy stuff."

"And wait'll you see Superboy and Miss Martian!" Kid Flash said, skidding to a stop beside them. "But I saw her first!"

Just then, Brick hurled a much, much larger boulder at them, only for Cassius to land in front of them, goo bursting from his hands and expanding, catching it before extending back toward Brick rapidly, releasing the boulder after half the distance and sending it crashing into him, throwing him.

"Focus, sidekicks," Cassius said. "Talk about your playdate later."

"It's not a playdate!" Kid Flash argued as Speedy sent another concussive arrow into Brick, just as ineffectively as every other time he'd tried it.

"Hey, Cupid, I hate to tell you how to do your job, but do you happen to have an arrow that, you know, actually works?" Cassius asked.

Speedy huffed, firing three arrows that each exploded into a small, brief fireball, sending Brick staggering backward, but still not hurting him.

"So, I'll take that as a no, then," Cassius said.

"Shut the fuck up, Void," Speedy said, aiming at Brick again.

"Go ahead," Brick said, spreading his arms invitingly.

Speedy let the arrow fly and it stuck to Brick's chest for a moment before a massive amount of red foam began to surge out of it, rapidly encasing Brick.

"High-density polyurethane foam," Kid Flash said. "Nice!"

Speedy turned, walking away.

"So Speedy, you in?" Robin asked.

"Pass," Speedy said. "I'm done letting Arrow and the League tell me what to do. I don't need a babysitter or a clubhouse to hang out with the other kids! Your Junior Justice League is a joke. Something to keep you busy, and _in your place_! Isn't that right, Void?"

"Now, see, this kid knows what's up," Cassius smirked. "I like you."

Speedy huffed, turning and walking away.

"Thanks for the support, Cassius," Robin said.

"Oh please," Cassius snorted. "The entire time you were talking about it he was ignoring you. He was _never_ going to join."

"He might have if you had helped convince him," Kid Flash said.

"This coming from the guy that still hasn't figured out that Miss Martian only has eyes for Superboy," Cassius said.

"That's not true!" Kid Flash said. "I can still win her over!"

"Right," Cassius snorted. "Anyway, I have some things to take care of, so I'll see you all later."

"Where do you think you're going?" Robin asked as Cassius turned to walk away.

"I just told you," Cassius said. "I have shit to take care of. A child like you wouldn't understand."

"Try me," Robin said.

"Okay, fine," Cassius shrugged, turning back around toward them, face completely serious. "In order for my super power to not dissolve my body into goo and remain that way, I need to feed on virgin brain tissue. Infants are the easiest, and also are much more tender than adults, as well as being virgins by default, so I'm going to find myself a midnight snack." He turned to walk away again, raising a hand. "I'll be sure to keep my communicator on while I'm raiding the NICU."

"Wha...he's joking...right?" Kid Flash asked.

"Stop!" Robin snapped, drawing a handful of his explosive disks.

"Oh, chill out!" Cassius said. "I'm fucking with you. The shit I have to do is personal, so if I _have_ to be escorted, I'll take Aqualad. He's got the most discretion and respect, so he'll be the easiest to deal with. Also, he won't tell the rest of you, besides the League, if he feels it's necessary."

"No," Robin said. "Either you tell us all now, or you don't go."

Cassius turned, directing a cold stare, dripping with malice, back at Robin. "You try and stop me, and you die. I've followed every rule your League placed on me, but I _am_ going to take care of my personal shit. If you want me escorted, I'll take Kaldur'ahm. Otherwise, I'm going alone."

"It is fine," Aqualad said, walking over to Cassius. "I'll go, and I'll report back to the League if it's anything they need to know about."

Robin nodded. "Fine. But I'm warning Batman about this."

"Go right ahead," Cassius said. "As I said, I'll have my communicator on, so they'll be able to track me."

He turned, walking away and Aqualad followed. They walked away from the lights before Cassius extended a pair of massive goo wings, flapping them to lift himself into the air before forming goo from his arms into a seat for Aqualad. He sat in it, and Cassius took off. Once they were away from the city, he extended goo under Aqualad's legs into a foot rest and formed arm rests. Aqualad raised an eyebrow but reclined in the chair, saying nothing. Cassius could tell he was tensed and ready to grab Cassius if he tried to drop him, but he made no such attempt. After a while, he flew down to the ground in a small town, making sure he was out of sight before he dropped off Aqualad and landed beside him, retracting his goo. Then, he turned, walking through the town, Aqualad following. They passed along under the streetlights, and Aqualad watched as Cassius passed under one a brunette, as he had known him, then passed through the shadows in between only to step into the next light as an adult blonde, now wearing a beat-up brown leather jacket over a white shirt, jeans, and beat-up steel-toed boots.

"You can shapeshift," Aqualad said, more than asked.

"Comes in handy on jobs as an assassin," Cassius said.

"But in exchange, it makes it hard to know who you are," Aqualad said.

"It helps that I didn't even know who I was to begin with," Cassius said. "My earliest memory is an unbearable agony as I was subjected to whatever experiment gave me this power. I managed to escape and the League of Shadows found me and took me in. It took me years to get them to tell me who I really was. And by that time...it was too late."

Cassius picked up a bouquet of flowers from a display outside a flower shop and Aqualad opened his mouth to scold him, only for Cassius to stop and pull a twenty out of his picket, slipping it into the mail slot of the shop's front door before continuing to walk. Aqualad's brow furrowed in confusion before he followed Cassius through the small town in silence. Finally, they reached a graveyard and he followed Cassius through it to three graves, one adult and two children, the two small headstones to either side of the larger one. Cassius knelt, setting the flowers on the grave before sitting on his knees and closing his eyes and falling still.

"A mother and her two children," Cassius said. "My first assignment in the League of Shadows. She accepted her fate as soon as I told her I was there to kill her, but she had a request. She asked me not to kill her children. I wasn't going to. I had never intended to. But then they saw me. I was under orders to kill anyone who saw me, so I didn't have a choice. She stabbed me to try and protect them, but it's hard to kill someone who's made out of living goo. I suffocated all three of them with my goo and sat them around the kitchen table, cleaned the knife, then took my goo back and left before anyone else saw me."

"You feel guilt for killing the children?" Aqualad asked.

Cassius was silent for a moment before shaking his head slowly. "I didn't. Not at first. Not for the longest time. At the time, I'd seen her in a dream, or a hallucination, and I felt like I knew her, so I thought maybe she'd recognize me, but she didn't. Later on, I discovered my shapeshifting ability and understood that no one would ever recognize me for being me, because I can be anyone. Whoever I was, that person doesn't exist anymore. Later on, a little while before Cadmus...and probably also why I was supposed to be disposed of...I forced Lady Shiva to tell me who I was. I used to be a hero. I fought against the League of Shadows, but one day I was captured and turned into...this. The pain wiped my memory, to the point that even Miss Martian can't fix it, no matter how hard she tried."

"And the family?" Aqualad asked, sounding like he'd already pieced it together.

"They were my family," Cassius said. "My wife. My children. The League sent me to kill my own family to see if I'd remember." He stared at the three names for a long moment. "Once Lady Shiva told me who I was, she asked me if I'd try to leave the League. I promised to stay loyal. I told her that it didn't matter to me who I used to be. I was a Shadow, now, so I would serve. And I also had people I wanted to protect. Cassandra. And Rose."

"Who are they?" Aqualad asked. "If you don't mind me asking.

"Cassandra is the daughter of David Cain and Lady Shiva," Cassius said. "Rose Wilson is Deathstroke's daughter. Neither of them were ever given a choice in what they want to do, and this life...it's not something that should be forced onto them."

"But you left them to work with us," Aqualad said. "How will you save them?"

"By killing their parents," Cassius said. "I've wanted to see those three's heads role since I met them."

Aqualad sighed. "You know the Justice League will not let you kill them."

"I don't intend to ask their permission," Cassius said, then sighed. "Sorry. I know I shouldn't talk about work around you. Old habits."

Aqualad raised his eyebrow. "Have you remembered something about them?"

"Only that my wife hated hearing about my work," Cassius said. "I don't even want to imagine what she'd say now. Especially given I was the one who killed her, and our children."

Aqualad nodded as Cassius stood.

"Can you keep a secret from the League and the team for me?" Cassius asked.

Aqualad's eyes narrowed. "That would depend on the secret."

"Well, keep this from the team," Cassius said. "Only Miss Martian knows, and she promised to keep it a secret. But...the main secret is...David Cain contacted me. He wants me to continue training Cassandra. I can't let the Justice League know yet. Not just because I plan to kill him but because I haven't made sure Cassandra's safe yet. But once I do..."

Aqualad turned and followed him as he began to walk away from the grave. "Why is it so important to you to save these children? Why them?"

Cassius shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe some part of me thinks it'll make up for me killing my own kids. Maybe it's something else. Maybe I just want to protect the only person I've ever met who looks at me, knows about my powers, and sees something other than a monster."

"Cassandra?" Aqualad guessed.

Cassius nodded. "Every time she looks at me...there's this...light in her eyes. If Cain wouldn't beat her bloody for it, she'd smile just for me being there. She knows what I've done, and what I am, and yet...for the first time in my life, someone looked at me like I was a person. Like I was important."

Aqualad was silent for a long while. "I will not tell the League or the team, if you can find a way to go to them to train without being caught."

"That's easy," Cassius said, holding out a hand, goo surging out of his hand and forming into a silhouette, which then transformed into a replica of himself. "It takes about half of my goo, and it won't last longer than twenty four hours yet..."

"But for all intents and purposes, he is me," the clone said before Cassius reabsorbed him.

"I see," Aqualad said, remaining silent for a long few moments. "I have a condition for our agreement. Miss Martian must verify your story. If she determines that you are telling the truth, then I will agree."

Cassius nodded and stopped in a dark backyard, forming Aqualad a seat and himself wings, then flew them back to Mount Justice. On the way, they stopped by a mall where Cassius bought Aqualad a pair of black jeans, a white Tee-shirt, and a light jacket with blue around the bottom and the underside of the sleeves, then the rest black, as well as a pair of sneakers, that way they could get some breakfast before heading back to the cave. By the time they arrived a little before noon the next day, the others were all standing by a hidden entrance that served as the front door, which was a rectangle of land that dropped into the ground to form a ramp into the hidden cave. As Cassius landed and retracted his goo, Robin walked over, wearing black jacket over a lime green sweatshirt, jeans, and upside-down triangular sunglasses.

"Where have you been!?" Robin demanded. "It's almost noon!"

"I told you I had to take care of some shit," Cassius said. "Then we stopped on the way back for breakfast."

"More baby brains?" Kid Flash asked.

"Of course," Cassius said. "Right Kaldur?"

Everyone looked to Aqualad, who stared at Cassius for a moment before nodding. "That's right. They were delicious."

"Very funny," Robin said. "Where'd you actually go?"

"I can-" Miss Martian stopped as Aqualad set a hand on her shoulder.

"Miss Martian, it is not Robin's business," Aqualad said. "He does not need to know."

"What!?" Robin demanded.

"It is _personal_," Aqualad said. "Unless you are going to explain everything about your own life, everything private that you wish to keep to yourself, you cannot expect Cassius to do the same."

"Yeah, well _I'm_ not an assassin who's only working with us because the assassins he worked for before tried to have him killed!" Robin said.

"That should not matter," Aqualad said. "I accompanied him, so I know where he was. It was not related to the League of Assassins, it was, in no way, a threat to the Justice League or this team, and he committed no crimes. Therefor, you do not need to know."

Robin clenched his fists and grit his teeth before nodding stiffly. "Fine. We'll see what Batman thinks about it."

He turned, storming back into the base and Cassius rolled his eyes.

"So...uh...about that tour?" Kid Flash asked.

"Sure," Miss Martian nodded.

"You coming?" Superboy asked Cassius as they all walked away.

"Sure," Cassius nodded, following.

* * *

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	11. Chapter 11

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Keeping Busy

Cassius looked around as the others took all the seats that had formed. After Miss Martian, currently going by Megan since it sounded like her real name of M'gann, had given them a tour, Superboy had smelled smoke and Megan realized her cookies were burning. Kid Flash hadn't minded and ate two, without bothering to ask permission, anyway, and Aqualad thanked her for him before everyone but Robin shared their names. Everyone except Superboy, who didn't have one. However, that fact had sparked a small problem when Megan used her telepathy to speak while trying to reassure him that they'd find a normal name. However, what she didn't realize was that the others would consider it an invasion of privacy, besides Cassius who was used to having her in his head after she had to search his mind for any sign of him being a spy every third day. Superboy took it worst, getting angry with her for it and telling her to stay out of his head, most likely because Cadmus had used the G-gnomes to control his mind his entire existence so far.

In order to try to cheer everyone up, Megan had decided to take them for a ride on her Bio-Ship, which was, apparently, a shapeshifting, sentient ship from Mars. Except, it had grown one too few seats when they all walked on, seatbelts growing from the seats to strap everyone in when they sat down. Cassius formed himself a goo chair, only for the floor under his chair to suddenly rear up and throw him before returning to normal. His body deformed into goo, shifting in the half a second it took to hit the floor so that he was landing on his feet in a low squat.

"What was that?" Cassius asked.

"Apparently you gross her out," Megan said. "I'm sorry."

"Well, if she'd give me a chair, I wouldn't have to make one," Cassius pointed out.

Megan was silent for a moment before a chair finally grew out of the floor, the chair about a third the size of the others'.

Kid Flash laughed. "Nice kiddie chair. Guess we know who the _real_ kid is around here. Even the ship knows."

Cassius glared at him before leaning back against the wall. "I'll just stand."

The Bio-Ship took back the chair and Megan sighed and used her communicator to ask Red Tornado to open the bay doors. Once they were open, the ship lurched out of the base, Cassius being pressed back into the wall harder by the acceleration. However, when Megan pulled the ship up sharply and pulled a barrel roll, he had to stick to the floor and wall with his goo. The ship emitted a loud string of tones at him and he rolled his eyes as Megan levelled out.

"If you don't want my goo to touch you, give me a chair," Cassius said.

Finally, a chair grew and he sat down, the chair's restraints forming around him instantly.

"Incredible!" Robin said, staring out the window.

"She sure is," Kid Flash said, staring at Megan. "Uh...I mean the ship! Which, like all ships, is a she!"

"Quick with his feet, not with his mouth," Robin teased.

"Dude!" Kid Flash snapped.

"Teenagers," Cassius grumbled, settling back into his chair and closing his eyes.

"Hey, how about showing us a little Martian shapeshifting," Robin suggested after a moment of hushed conversation between him, Megan, and Kid Flash.

Megan stood and her body began to ripple and change from her feet up, leaving her wearing a Robin suit with black hair matching his own, though she was still female. Cassius grinned, unable to pass up the chance to take a stab at Robin.

"Wow, you're good," Cassius said. "You even managed to make them look more manly."

"Not cool," Robin said, glaring at him as Megan stifled a laugh.

She shifted into a female Kid Flash next.

"Is it wrong that I think I'm hot?" Kid Flash asked.

"Yes," Cassius said. "Want to hear a philosophical question?"

"Sure," Kid Flash nodded.

"If you could make a clone of yourself who's a different gender, would it be incest, or masturbation?" Cassius smirked.

"Ew!" Robin said instantly.

"Good question," Kid Flash said.

"Next topic," Megan said, changing back into herself.

"Your shapeshifting is impressive, Megan," Robin said, apparently agreeing with her. "But...you know you're not going to be fooling anyone with those."

"Mimicking boys is a lot harder," Megan said.

"And...your clothes..." Aqualad trailed off.

"They're organic, like the ship," Megan said. "They respond to my mental commands."

"As long as they're the only ones," Superboy growled.

"Can you do that ghosting through walls thing that Manhunter does?" Kid Flash ask to try and lighten the mood again.

"Density Shifting?" Megan asked, hesitating. "No. I-It's a very advanced technique."

"Flash can vibrate his molecules right through a wall," Robin spoke up, then chuckled, gesturing at Kid Flash. "When he tries it...bloody nose."

"Dude!" Kid Flash snapped.

"Here's something I _can_ do," Megan smiled, just as the bioship turned invisible around them. "Camouflage Mode."

"Red Tornado to Miss Martian," Red Tornado's voice said from the ship's speakers suddenly. "An emergency alert has been triggered at the Happy Harbor power plant. I suggest you investigate. Covertly. I'm sending coordinates."

The others all looked around at each other, besides Cassius.

"Received," Megan said. "Adjusting course."

"Tornado's keeping us busy again," Robin said.

"You wanted a mission," Cassius said, once again lounging back in his chair with his eyes closed. "Not every mission's going to be like Cadmus."

"That's true," Megan said. "A simple fire led you to Superboy. We should find out what caused the alert."

"I think I know the cause," Superboy said, looking to his right.

They all looked, seeing a massive tornado rushing toward them and Megan gasped harshly, turning the ship to pilot it away, only for them to flip backward as they were sucked in anyway. The ship flipped and spun for a moment before Megan regained control and used the tornado's wind to slingshot the ship back out of it before quickly flying to the ground in a parking lot and opening a hole in the floor for them all to drop out of.

"Robin, are tornados common to New England?" Aqualad asked, seeing he was already gone. "Robin!"

"No, they're not," Cassius said. "And certainly nothing this big."

Robin's voice laughed just before the windows of the power plant began to burst from one side moving toward the other.

"He was just here," Megan said.

"He and his teacher do that a lot," Cassius said. "Come on."

He covered his legs in goo before launching himself at the building, retracting it as he flew. The others chased him and he slipped through a newly shattered window just in time to drill a goo-covered fist into the face of the red and black robot that had used a tornado to blast Robin into a support pillar. The Robot flew backward before bouncing, growling in annoyance. He had black along his sides and the outside of his arms, black barrels on the insides of his forearms that could generate tornados, a tattered brown scarf around his neck, constantly blowing from his own wind, and blue hoses going from his shoulders to the outsides of his forearms, then smaller ones from his back to his tornado generators.

"Who's your new friend?" Superboy asked.

"Didn't catch his name but he plays kind of rough," Robin said.

"Your fault for ditching us," Cassius said.

"My apologies," the robot said. "You may address me as Mr. Twister."

He sent out a pair of tornados as Superboy and Cassius charged, stopping both, though both were able to keep from being thrown away, Cassius by using goo to stick to the floor. Then, he sent a tornado blasting into them directly and sent both flying away, a tornado forming around Superboy in the process to spin him for a moment. Superboy crashed to the ground and stayed there as Cassius walked back over, sighing and shifting his goo clothes into a black body suit with a metal mask over the lower half of his face. Then, the remaining five all charged, Megan flying and Kid Flash speeding ahead of the others. He leapt forward onto his hands, then flipped from there to launch himself at Twister with a dropkick, only for Twister to use a pair of tornados to hurl him out through an open door behind him. As he was turned around, Cassius dropped into a puddle of goo, streaking forward just as the robot blasted Aqualad and Megan, hurling them both.

"I was prepared to be challenged by a superhero," Twister said. "I was not, however, expecting children."

"We're not children!" Robin said, hurling a sharpened explosive disk and a small bomb.

The bomb dispersed Twister's tornados when it exploded on the ground, allowing the disk to stab into his chest, only for him to flick it away, allowing it to explode off to the side.

"Objectively, you are," the robot said.

"But I'm not," Cassius said, suddenly reforming behind him, slamming a pair of massive goo fists down on his back. "I'm not a hero, either."

He slammed a punch down into Twister's head before Twister blasted the ground with a tornado, hurling Cassius, only for him to land on the wall, then leap off, his right fist extending and smashing a punch into Twister's entire body, smashing him into the ground hard. However, as soon as he pulled his fist back, Twister sent out another tornado, this one hurling Superboy into him and sending both crashing into the wall. A moment later, he formed two more to slam Robin and Aqualad into each other, then hurl them into Megan.

"I agree with you, child," Twister said. "You all are most _certainly_ not heroes." He turned flying out of the building as Cassius pushed himself up, snarling.

"I will rip that fucking tin can apart!" Cassius growled.

He stepped outside just as a tornado carrying Wally exploded into the wall off to his left, only for Megan to catch Kid Flash with her telekinesis.

"I gotcha Wally," Megan said.

"Thanks," Kid Flash said.

Twister watched him for a moment before beckoning him forward. Cassius formed a pair of two foot goo blades from the backs of his wrists and charged, encasing his entire body below his neck in goo to enhance his speed and strength.

"Cassius, wait!" Robin shouted. "No killing!"

"It's a fucking robot!" Cassius shouted, charging straight through a tornado.

He leapt at Twister, slashing, only for him to avoid it and blast Cassius, hurling him backward. Cassius flipped, landing on his feet and a pair of strands of goo shot out, catching Twister by the chest before Cassius grabbed them and spun, swinging him over his head before smashing him back down on the ground. Then, as Twister was standing, the goo retracted, sending Cassius hurtling toward him, his right hand expanding into a massive goo fist before crashing into Twister, sending him flying. After a hundred feet, he crashed down, beginning to bounce and spin away before crashing through a tree and plowing a trench into the ground, finally stopping.

"Whoa!" Kid Flash said. "Just how strong _are_ you!?"

"Not as strong as Superboy," Cassius said. "I simply use an appropriate application of physics to adjust the situation. In this case, momentum and a solid fucking fist."

"You are much more powerful than I expected," Twister said, rising into the air and drifting toward them.

"What do you want!?" Aqualad demanded.

"Isn't it obvious?" Twister asked. "I'm waiting for a real hero."

"Read his mind," Aqualad said. "Find a weakness."

"I thought I wasn't supposed to do that!" Megan said.

"It's okay with the bad guys!" Robin said.

"Nothing, I'm getting nothing!" Megan said, then smiled, slapping the heal of her hand into her forehead. "Hello Megan! Mr. Twister is Red Tornado in disguise! He's inorganic. An android. How many androids do you know that can generate tornados?"

"As many as two," Cassius said.

"Red Tornado sent us here!" Aqualad said.

"After saying we'd be 'tested' soon enough," Robin added. "_This_ is his test! Something to keep us busy!"

"Speedy called it, we're a joke," Kid Flash said.

"While that's true, think of it this way," Cassius said. "Is his purpose to keep us busy, or test our teamwork to see if we're actually ready for a real mission that they have for us?"

The others looked around at each other before all of them nodded.

"You have a plan?" Aqualad asked.

"I have something better," Cassius said. "I have Superboy. I'm going to turn him into a bullet, with a bit of help from Miss Martian."

They all looked at Superboy, who nodded. Cassius expanded his right goo hand, picking Superboy up so the bottom of his hands was just below Superboy's arms. Then, he pulled his arm back.

"As soon as I say, use your telekinesis to speed him up and shove him through the tornado," Cassius said.

Megan nodded and Cassius pulled his arm back. Then, he nodded just as he stepped forward, moving to throw Superboy. Megan swiped an arm as Cassius released him, and Superboy sped through the air in a streak, passing through a tornado in an instant, though being blown slightly off course. However, it was lose enough, and instead of impacting directly, Superboy was just off to the side and slammed a devastating haymaker into Twister, sending him exploding toward the ground. Cassius formed two hundred feet of goo rope and held it out to Kid Flash.

"Wrap it around his arms and legs," Cassius said.

Kid Flash grabbed it and took off instantly as the remaining four ran toward him. Before he could get there, however, twin bolts of lightning flashed out of his tornado generators, blasting into Superboy, who shouted in pain, then crashed into Kid Flash, both of them bouncing back toward Cassius and the others. Cassius caught both, reabsorbing his goo rope before charging ahead of the others, Aqualad just behind him. However, before they could reach him, a bolt of lightning hit the ground, exploding into a massive fireball and hurling them backward. Cassius pushed himself up just as the Bio-Ship floated over them, between them and Twister.

"Fine then," Twister said. "I won't deny you children have power, but playing hide-and-seek with you will not help me achieve my objectives, so stay concealed!"

Kid Flash stirred suddenly, only for Megan to cover his mouth.

"If you confront me again, I will show...no...mercy!" he made a fist, electricity arcing around it for a moment before he turned, flying himself away.

"What happened?" Kid Flash asked.

"I placed the Bio-Ship between us-" Megan stopped as Superboy shouted in rage, punching a boulder beside him that had been blasted free of the ground by Twister's last attack.

"And that's supposed to make it right!?" Superboy demanded, storming over to her. "You tricked us into thinking Twister was Red Tornado!"

"She didn't do it on purpose!" Aqualad said.

"It-It was a rookie mistake," Robin said. "We shouldn't have listened."

"You _are_ pretty inexperienced," Kid Flash said, hands in his pockets and staring at the ground. "Hit the showers. We'll take it from here."

"Stay out of our way!" Superboy snarled.

"Fine then," Cassius said. "Megan, feel like coming with _me_ to stop Twister?"

Megan looked at him in surprise, as did the others. "Really? But...I messed everything up."

"How?" Cassius asked. "Because you made a logical guess based off of the information at hand? Robin, Kid Flash, could you honestly look me in the eye and tell me that the Justice League _wouldn't_ stage a supervillain battle to test you?"

Both stared at the ground.

"Like I said, logical guess based on the information at hand," Cassius said. "Besides that, we didn't stop fighting. We tried something new that we're not good at, but we didn't stop fighting. We _lost_. Shit happens. If you want to bench one of our most versatile members because of that, that's fine. Megan and I will go and stop him ourselves."

"What do you mean versatile?" Robin asked.

"Uh, telepathy and telekinesis?" Cassius said. "Silent strategizing that Twister can't hear and the ability to manipulate objects around her from a distance, like, say, hurling a car at him from behind? No, you're right. Completely useless in a fight." He turned, walking past the others. "You coming, Megan?"

"Right behind you!" Megan said, pushing herself up and flying over to him.

"How much weight can you lift with your telekinesis?" Cassius asked as he lifted him by the arms.

"About twenty five thousand pounds," Megan said.

"Good," Cassius nodded. "Plenty of power. When we get there, turn me into a bullet like we did with Superboy. Then I'll keep him distracted."

Megan nodded as they spotted Twister, standing in a small park while controlling three tornados that were tearing a town apart.

"Keep us telepathically linked," Cassius said.

Megan nodded and released Cassius, only to catch and launch him with her telekinesis. Twister spun out of the way at the last second, narrowly avoiding Cassius's fist. He spun, slamming his hands into the ground to avoid being thrown by a tornado.

_"Boulder from behind him!"_ Cassius instructed.

_"I'll hit you!"_ Megan said.

_"Now!"_ Cassius snapped, dropping into a puddle of goo when the tornado obscured him from view, sticking himself solidly to the ground.

A moment later, a massive boulder crashed into Twister's back, launching him forward past Cassius, who the boulder's rubble landed on. He reformed beside it, his right arm's goo formed under all of it before he swiped his arm, flinging it at Twister as a cloud.

_"Throw as many as you can into him once they miss,"_ Cassius said.

Twister blasted half the cloud back at Cassius, who formed himself a goo shield, then parted it just in time to see the rest of the cloud explode into twister's back, sending him exploding into the ground. Cassius rocketed forward instantly, slamming an uppercut into Twister's head just in time for Superboy to leap over him, drilling a punch into Twister's side.

_"Megan, link everyone,"_ Cassius said.

_"We're linked,"_ Megan said, everyone else holding a hand to their head instantly.

"What did we say!?" Superboy demanded.

_"Trust me,"_ Cassius said. _"We need to figure out what he wants with Red_ _Tornado."_ He paused to catch a boat Twister hurled at him and Aqualad who he'd ended up beside as Aqualad arrived. Then, he moved to hurl it back, feeling Megan's telekinesis helping him, sending it hurtling through a tornado and into Twister, where it shattered and sent him bouncing away._ "Miss Martian can impersonate his looks and voice, telling us to hit the showers and he'll take over. Then Kid Flash can form tornados to fake the fight. Miss Martian has to get blasted and knocked out, however, so that we can see what Twister does."_

_"If she gets knocked out, she'll be defenseless,"_ Aqualad pointed out as Superboy punched Twister toward Aqualad and Cassius, who moved to intercept him, only to both be blasted by a tornado.

_"No, she won't,"_ Cassius said. _"Because I'll be transforming into a puddle of goo for her to land on. That way, even if she gets knocked out for real, I'll be close enough to react and surprise him before the rest of you get back."_

_"It's worth a shot,"_ Robin said. _"Good idea, Cassius."_

_"Don't thank me,"_ Cassius said, hurling a boulder at Twister forcing him to block it so that Aqualad could smash a water mallet into his back, hurling him into Superboy, who sent him flying. _"This was all Megan's plan. We went after the finer points before we linked you all."_

_"Alright," _Aqualad said._ "On your mark, Miss Martian."_

Just as Twister pushed himself up, Megan floated down in front of them all as Red Tornado.

"Hit the showers, boys," Megan said in Red Tornado's voice. "I was hoping you could handle this. Clearly you cannot."

"But we've got a plan now!" Robin said. "And we're not doing too badly!"

"The subject is not up for debate," Megan said.

The others all acted dejected and turned, leaving quickly, and Cassius dropped into a puddle at the first opportunity, forming a pair of tiny eyes to watch the fight's progress near the center of it.

"I was beginning to believe you'd never show up," Twister said.

"I'm here now," Megan said, holding an arm out to the side, Kid Flash streaking to the spot and spinning a tornado into existence before guiding it at Twister when she swung her arm.

Twister avoided it, then blaster it as it spun back around, only for Kid Flash to escape. Twister hurled his tornado at Megan, who held out her hand and dispersed it with a blast of telekinesis.

_"Tornado behind her for show,"_ Cassius said. _"Megan, hurl a bunch of rocks at him from the tornado. Small ones."_

Megan and Kid Flash complied.

"We are evenly matched, Twister," Megan said as she hurled the stones, all about the size of her head.

"No, Tornado, we are not!" Twister said, punching the ground with his left hand and sending a massive blast of air shooting into the air, blocking the stones.

Then, he began to fire lightning at Megan. She flew out of the way first one way, then back the other. Finally, the lightning hit a boat and it exploded, Megan flying toward Cassius, who slipped out to get under her as she crashed to the ground, impressive fake electricity flashing over her body for a moment.

_"You awake?"_ Cassius asked.

_"I'm awake,"_ Megan said.

"Remain still, android," Twister said, his fingers opening and extending a cord each, which reached down toward Megan's head, attaching to it in several places. "The reprogramming won't take long."

_"Grab those,"_ Cassius said.

Megan complied instantly, allowing her head to transform back to normal. "Longer than you might think."

"No!" Twister gasped, just before Cassius slipped out from under her, his goo exploded upward in a spike and driving itself completely through Twister's torso before he reformed his body behind Twister.

"Send us!" Cassius said, attaching himself to the android with his goo.

Megan hurled them both into the air just as Kid Flash spun a tornado into existence, hurling them away. After a moment, just as Superboy leapt at Twister, Cassius leapt off of his back, sending him streaking even faster into Superboy's fist, which shattered part of his back. Superboy caught his left arm instantly, slamming another punch into his gut, his fist breaking completely through. Just then, Cassius reached them, slashing Twister's trapped arm off.

"Batter up!" Cassius said, stepping out of the way.

Superboy swung the arm around instantly, shattering it against Twister's head and sending him flying out into the water where Aqualad reported he was waiting with an anchor. A moment later, the water lit up with electricity, then an explosion and Twister was hurled back out of the water missing his other arm. As he landed, Megan lifted him into the air, then ripped his legs off with her telekinesis before two of Robin's explosive disks blasted him in the back. He fell, crashing down hard on its back. Then, the torso opened and a man in a green jumpsuit scrambled out of it, collapsing beside it, a shallow scratch in the side of his face from where Cassius had nearly impaled him through the head.

"Damn," Cassius said. "You got lucky."

"Foul!" the man stammered. "I-I-I call foul!"

"Do it, Megan," Cassius said.

Megan ripped a massive boulder from the ground instantly and floated it over to crush him.

"M'gann, no!" Aqualad shouted, moving to stop her, only for the boulder to explode down on the man.

"Very well done," Cassius said.

"Dammit Void!" Robin seethed, turning and storming over to Megan, getting in her face as he yelled. "Megan, I don't know how things are done on Mars, we don't EXECUTE OUR CAPTIVES! ! ! This is _exactly_ why you should have been locked up, Void!"

"Chill out, sidekick," Cassius said. "Megan didn't kill anyone."

"What?" Aqualad asked.

"You said you trust me," Megan said, lifting the boulder and revealing the crushed robot underneath.

"But..." Robin looked to Cassius. "How'd you know? Both of you?"

"I cut his face when I stabbed the robot," Cassius said. "Even as a shallow scratch, it would have bled because it's in the head where all of the blood vessels are shallow and the blood is fresh from the lungs, so it moves easier."

"And I knew he was a machine, because I couldn't read his mind," Megan said.

Kid Flash knelt, picking up one of the eyes. "Cool. Souvenir."

"We should have had more faith in you," Aqualad said, setting a hand on Megan's shoulder. "And for the record, Cassius was right about your powers' usefulness."

"Yeah, you rocked this mission," Kid Flash said. "Get it? Rocked?"

"Ignore him," Robin said.

"I don't know why it surprises you all still that I know how to fight," Cassius said. "All I've ever known is killing and violence. I got good at knowing how to apply violence in the right amounts."

"That's not something to be proud of," Robin said.

"Who said anything about being proud?" Cassius asked.

"We're all glad you're on the team, Megan," Robin said.

"Thanks," Megan said. "So am I."

"We're being recorded," Cassius said, kneeling and tapping on the eye still in the head, which had a small red light inside the pupil. "Hello there. Sorry we broke your toy. If you want to come collect it, we can wait here to pay you back for the damages." The light went out and he huffed. "Guess that's a no, then."

"How do you know we were being watched?" Robin asked.

"There's a camera in the pupil," Cassius said, plucking the eye from the robot's head and crushing it in a goo hand, then opening his hand and pulling the camera out the tiny camera. "It had a red light while they were still watching."

"Nice catch," Robin said. "Glad we didn't say anything incriminating."

"Agreed," Aqualad said. "Let's get it back to Mount Justice."

The others agreed and Megan focused, telling them she was calling the Bio-Ship.

_"Thank you for sticking up for me, and for giving me credit for your plan,"_ Megan said.

_"I may be an assassin, but I'm not heartless,"_ Cassius said. _"I've never had friends before."_

Megan smiled just as the ship arrived and they all got on, Megan bringing the robot's parts. This time, the ship made no fuss about giving Cassius a seat, and a couple moments later, they were on their way home.

* * *

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	12. Chapter 12

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Reporting In

Cassius spun around Cassandra's punch and passing her on her left, but she instantly spun away from him, swinging a right windmill kick at him. A goo arm burst from his chest, catching her foot and swinging her into the air, only for her to flip, slamming a kick into his goo hand's thumb to free herself, then flipped to the ground. As she landed, she charged, rolling under his punch and standing grabbing him by the arm and bending him forward, holding her hand to his throat like a knife, only to stop as a third arm bearing goo claws pressed to her abdomen, hovering there.

"Well done," Cassius said. "You were close that time. You have a hard time reading my goo's movements don't you?"

"There's no body language to read," Cassandra signed.

"I suppose," Cassius nodded.

"You're still here?" Cain growled as he walked in. "Cassandra, it's time for virtual training."

Cassandra nodded and left the room. Cain glared at Cassius for a long moment.

"I intend to send her on a hit soon," Cain said. "And I'm sending you with her."

"With an escort, I assume," Cassius said.

"No," Cain said. "Just you two. Her first hit's not going to be anything too difficult. Just dirty work the Shadows don't feel inclined to do."

"Understood," Cassius said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go and report in to Deathstroke about my mission."

Cain nodded and Cassius left, meeting Cassandra by the door. Before he could say anything, she glanced at the room Cain was in before giving him a quick hug, then slipping into the virtual simulator room before she could get in trouble. Cassius sighed, smiling, and left, forming himself wings and taking off. He wished he could just take her, but she wasn't ready to leave. Cain would never let her stay gone. He forced the thoughts out of his mind and flew until he reached Deathstroke's home, grimacing at the unpleasant memories there.

"Deathstroke, you here!?" Cassius called out.

"Be right down!" Deathstroke's voice called back.

Cassius walked into the house toward the living room, only to stop at the training room. Rose was kneeling on the ground, crying silently and struggling to stop. One of her eyes was already swollen shut and blood was running out of her nose and a split in her lip. Cassius walked over to her, ripping off a piece of a drape on the way, then knelt in front of her, only for her to instantly recoil and scramble away from him, eyes wide with fear.

"It's alright," Cassius said, holding his hands up to show he wasn't a threat. "I won't hurt you."

Rose hesitated before shifting forward. He reached up, gently cupping the non-bruised side of her face before wiping the blood off of her face carefully. More blood ran out of her nose, but after a moment, he managed to get most of it off her face before holding the balled up rag to her nose.

"Hold this here for about fifteen minutes or so and it should stop bleeding," he said.

She nodded, holding the rag and he gently felt her nose for any breaks. She winced, but didn't pull away.

"It's not broken, so it should be fine once it heals," he said.

"Thank you," Rose said softly, voice still wavering, but no longer crying.

He smiled, gingerly wiping the tears from her cheeks before hearing metal scrape behind him. "You're going to want to step back now."

She did as he said just before Deathstroke stepped around the corner, driving his sword down through Cade's heart. She shouted in surprise, eyes wide, only for them to widen further as Cade stood, pulling the sword further through him. Once the hilt hit his back, his torso turned into goo and opened and he pulled the sword out, then formed goo around his hand and wiped the blood off the blade, reclaiming it, before handing the sword to Deathstroke.

"I told you to stay away from my daughter," Deathstroke snarled.

"Wrong," Cassius said. "You told me I wasn't allowed to _train_ your daughter."

Deathstroke narrowed his eye and opened his mouth to speak, only for Cassius to hold up a hand.

"Do you want my report, or not?" Cassius asked.

Deathstroke's glare intensified, but he waved his hand for Cassius to begin.

"We haven't gotten a real mission yet," Cassius said. "The Justice League and most of the team still don't trust me, and I'm still on probation, but I managed to secure both Aqualad and Miss Martian's trust. I left a clone to take my place on the team while I went to train Cassandra Cain and to come here."

"Have you taken any missions yet?" Deathstroke asked.

"Not yet," Cassius said. "They don't trust me enough to let me find out any important information, they trust the team only slightly more, and they haven't determined if the team's teamwork is actually ready for a mission. I agree with them on that. The team is still a team in name only. We _did_ battle and defeat a robot similar to Red Tornado who was sent to defeat and reprogram him. When we defeated the robot, its chest opened to reveal it as a suit and an android made to seem human fell out. We destroyed it and the League took it to examine it and its programming, but I doubt they'll tell the team anything."

"Understood," Deathstroke nodded. "I'll inform the Light. They may wish to look into that as well. You may leave now. My daughter is not your concern."

Cassius watched him walk away before sighing and shaking his head. "I'll see you around, Rose." He turned to leave, only for her to catch his arm.

"Wait," Rose said. "Is it...does it...You've killed a lot of people, right? Does...Does it ever get easier? I mean...do the nightmares...do they ever go away?"

"I don't know," Cassius said. "At first, I didn't have any. I didn't care about taking life one way or the other. But recently, one job in particular has been haunting me.' He looked the way Deathstroke had come before kneeling and pulling Rose into a hug so he could whisper. "Do you want to leave the Shadows?"

Rose pulled away, eyes wide with surprise. "I...I don't...I mean..." she glance after Deathstroke as well. "He's my father. I can't just...But I..."

"You don't have to decide now," Cassius said. "I couldn't take you away right now anyway. I'll stop by every now and then. If you change your mind, let me know, and I'll do what I can."

Rose nodded, smiling for a moment. "Thank you."

He nodded and stood, messing up her hair and making her laugh for a moment before she scowled at him, fixing her hair. "Take care kid."

He walked outside again and formed himself a pair of wings before taking off again, heading back toward Mount Justice.

* * *

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	13. Chapter 13

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

First Mission

Cassius took a long, slow breath before opening his eyes. They had their first mission. Santa Prisca, an island that produced a neo-steroid called Venom which would drastically enhance its user's strength several times over for as long as it was in their system, was still operating, but had cut off all shipments of Venom. The team wanted them to go in and investigate, likely to ensure they weren't building an army. The team would be dropping in at two separate points for covert recon, and the Justice league had left leadership of the team up to them to decide.

"Drop Zone A in thirty," Megan announced.

Cassius and Aqualad stood. Aqualad tapped his belt buckle and his red shirt turned black in a wave running up from the belt as Cassius shifted his clothes into a formfitting suit of armor which flexed like cloth but could deflect fifty caliber heavy machine gun bullets. He knew. The League of Shadow had tested it. He also formed himself a matching metal mask over the lower half of his face, just for kicks.

"Ready," Aqualad said as their chairs melted into the floor.

"Ready," Cassius nodded.

"Putting Bio-Ship in Camouflage Mode," Megan said as she flew lower.

Then, the floor opened up beneath them and they both fell, splashing down in the water and beginning to swim, Cassius forming himself diving fins in order to keep up with Aqualad. Aqualad formed a water sword with one of his handles and slashed a net in front of them open, allowing them to slip through and swim to the water. Cassius retracted his goo fins before they climbed out, Cassius instantly launching himself to a sensor in front of them and sticking a device the League had given them to trick the sensors onto the top of it.

"Heat and motion sensors are patched," Aqualad reported. "Data is now on a continuous loop. Move in."

"Aqualad, Void, Drop B is go," Megan said.

"Head to the factory," Aqualad said as Cassius used his goo to rapidly scale the face of a cliff while keeping Aqualad stuck to his back. "We'll track your GPS and rendezvous A-S-A-P."

"Roger that!" Robin said before their communicators went silent.

_"Megan, we linked?"_ Cassius asked.

_"Yes,"_ Megan replied, the two of them being the only two with a link, since he was the only one used to it enough to not get a headache when she put a little too much force into her telepathy. _"I know I've asked this all the time, but are you sure it's a good idea to try and fool the League of Shadows instead of just taking Cassandra and Rose now?"_

_"Stay on mission, Megan,"_ Cassius said. _"And yes, I'm sure. If I tried to take them now, the Shadows would kill them both. Unless the Shadows force my hand, I have to earn the Justice League's trust first." _He set Aqualad down on top of the cliff, retracting his goo. _"Besides, Cassandra doesn't want to leave, and Rose isn't sure. If I take them before they're ready, they'll just go back, or worse, they'll be _actual_ spies."_

_"True,"_ Megan said. _"Alright. Going silent. I'll keep us linked."_

Cassius sent her a general feeling of acknowledgement, rather than actual words, and he and Aqualad continued in silence.

"Wait, did you hear that?" Superboy asked suddenly.

"Uh, no," Kid Flash said. "Wait, is this a super hearing thing?"

"Man, you _do_ have great ears," Megan said.

"Rob, you got anything?" Kid Flash asked. "Robin? I hate it when he does that."

"Superboy, Kid, switch to infrared," Aqualad said. "See if you're being tracked."

"Got a squad of armed bozos, incoming," Kid Flash said.

"Are they looking around, or just walking?" Cassius asked.

"Two squads," Superboy corrected. "The one I'm tracking is just walking."

"Same," Kid Flash said.

"They'll meet each other before they find us," Superboy reported, just before gunfire crackled through the air.

"No super hearing required now," Kid Flash said.

"Each other, or you?" Cassius asked.

"Each other," Superboy said.

"Swing wide, steer clear," Aqualad reported, he and Cassius running through the trees now.

"Yeah, yeah, just as soon as I find Rob," Kid Flash said. Then, a moment later, he shouted begore grunting several times, Cassius swearing instantly as the gunfire stopped. "So much for the stealthy."

The gunfire began again and Kid Flash began to shout in fear.

"Move in!" Cassius snapped. "Clean up his mess!"

He looked to Aqualad, who sighed and nodded. They both moved as quickly as they could. Finally, they reached the fight just in time for Cassius to drop from a tree and knock out a man wearing a red cloak with a black mask that was designed to have a pair of fangs handing down over his cheekbones. Aqualad landed beside him and Cassius looked between the two groups, one of which were all dressed the same as the one Cassius knocked out.

"Two factions," Cassius said. "One's a cult."

"Tie them up," Aqualad said, holding a rope out to Kid Flash, who had everyone restrained in moments.

"The cultists belong to the Cult of the Kobra," Robin said.

"I am sure that Batman would have mentioned it if he knew that a dangerous extremist was running Santa Prisca's Venom operation," Kid Flash said.

"Agreed," Robin said. "And since there's clearly no love lost between the cultists and those goons-"

"The cultists took over by force," Cade finished. "The cartel used to own the factories, but the cult moved in and took over, somehow. Which is all the more impressive given this guy is here."

He nudged a cartel member with a full-faced wrestling mask on, which was white over the face with a pair of horn-like spikes on the sides of the forehead, then the rest black.

"Who is it?" Kid Flash asked.

"No way," Robin said. "Is that...Bane?"

"Wait, like...super strong, uses Venom, thorn in Batman's side, Bane?" Kid Flash asked.

"That's right," Cassius nodded. "To take over, they'd have had to beat him. Which means they had someone here stronger."

"I would think a cult filled with guys on Venom would do it," Kid Flash said.

"These cultists aren't on Venom," Robin said. "Kobra's hording the stuff."

"If they were on Venom, they'd be about as big as Bane is now, and they'd be super strong," Cassius said. "Whatever they want with the Venom, it's not an army of troops who're using it."

"What then?" Aqualad asked.

"Why don't we go ask?" Cassius asked.

"I agree," Robin said. "We're not leaving until I know what's going on here."

"Until _you_ know what's going on?" Kid Flash asked.

"This team needs a leader!" Robin argued.

"And that's you?" Kid flash scoffed, leaning down to get in Robin's face. "Dude, you're a thirteen-year-old kid who ducked out on us without a word!"

Robin laughed. "And you're a mature fifteen? You blew our cover the first chance you got!"

"Aqualad's the leader," Cassius said, stopping them continuing to argue. "He was giving orders earlier and knew how to respond to situations as they developed. It would have worked perfectly if Robin hadn't abandoned the team and Kid Flash hadn't moved in when we told him not to."

"Don't you want to lead?" Miss Martian asked Superboy, who shook his head.

"You?" Superboy asked.

"After the Mister Twister fiasco?" Megan asked, holding up a hand and shaking her head.

"You did alright," Superboy smiled.

Megan blushed, looking away. _"He's so sweet! Come on, Megan, just tell him! But, what if he doesn't like me back? I need to-"_

_"Save the angst for after the mission, Megan,"_ Cassius said through their link, making her blush darken, apparently having forgotten they still had an open telepathic link.

Superboy's head turned toward the cartel suddenly, his eyes narrowing before he smirked.

"You don't even have powers!" Kid Flash was saying.

"Neither does Batman!" Robin argued.

"Are they still going at it?" Cassius asked.

"They ignored you earlier," Aqualad said.

"You're not batman!" Kid Flash said.

Just then, Bane laughed. "Such clever niños," Bane said. "But you only know half the story. Let me show you the rest, get you into the factory via my secret entrance."

"There _is_ a secret entrance, but he's also hiding something," Megan said, keeling down in front of him, her eyes beginning to glow white.

Bane grinned. "Ah, ah, ah, Chica. Bane is not that easy."

Megan groaned in irritation. "He's mentally reciting fútbol scores en español. This could take a while."

"It's not complicated," Bane smirked. "The enemy of my enemy is my friend."

"I could make him talk from here," Cassius volunteered. "Even he can only handle so much pain. Might also take a while though."

"No torture!" Robin snapped.

"We'll follow you," Aqualad decided. "However, if you double cross us, you will regret it."

Bane's grin grew before he nodded. Cassius untied him, only to bind his hands to each other and to his back with his goo. Bane glared at him before turning and leading them through the trees. After a little bit, they reached a cliff where the cult was loading containers of what they assumed was Venom near a helipad. Cassius tapped his communicator to test its signal, but instantly heard static.

"Comms are jammed," Cassius said. "Time for the Martian phone?"

"Not yet," Robin said.

"If the cult's not selling to the usual suspects-" Kid Flash began.

"Then we need to identify the buyers," Robin finished.

"That's what I'm thinking," Kid Flash said.

"Yeah," Robin snorted. "You're the thinker."

"Sarcasm?" Kid Flash asked. "Really? A real leader would focus on getting answers."

"Answers are this way," Bane said, tapping a boulder with his foot. "Since you won't allow me free use of my arms, perhaps you would be kind enough to move the boulder for me?"

Cassius formed his goo into a large hand, lifting the boulder aside and revealing a tunnel build like an old mine shaft. Bane walked into it as Cassius set the boulder down and they all followed, Kid Flash pulling down his goggles and switching on their thermal sensors.

"You know you have _actual_ night vision, too, right?" Cassius asked.

"I do?" Kid Flash asked.

Cassius sighed, shaking his head.

"A real leader would know what gear he carries, and what it does," Robin said instantly.

"A real leader wouldn't argue with a team member about whether or not that team member has what a real leader should do," Cassius said. "A real leader would just act like a leader, just like _our_ leader, Aqualad."

Both glared at Cassius just as Bane turned, eyes narrowing in concentration as he contorted one of his arms and bent forward in order to press his thumb to a sensor. A pair of red lights lit up on the wall of the tunnel before turning green as a concealed door slid open, revealing a metal hallway. The walked to a doo on the other end and Robin carefully looked through before reporting it was clear and darting into the room. They moved to follow, but he was already gone.

"Has that little fool already been caught?" Bane asked.

"No, he just does that," Aqualad sighed.

"Stay put!" Kid Flash said said, deactivating his goggles and grinning. "I'll get our intel and be back before the boy wonder!"

"Wait, Kid!" Aqualad said before he took of in a blur.

Cassius sighed, resting his face in his palm. "And I used to criticize the a couple of the Shadows I knew for being immature when they couldn't decide who should spar against me first."

"Great chain of command," Bane smirked.

"Take us to product storage," Cassius said.

Bane nodded and led them through the warehouse. After a few minutes, they reached the storage area and stopped, all of them ducking into cover as they stared at the massive amount of Venom in the room.

"That's a massive shipment," Aqualad breathed.

"Yeah, but they're only taking new product off the line," Superboy pointed out. "They're not touching _this_ Venom." he gestured at a crate filled with Venom beside them that was older than the crates the forklifts in the room were taking.

"Maybe...freshness counts?" Miss Martian asked.

"Bane, how long does Venom stay good?" Cassius asked.

"Depends how long I go between uses," Bane said.

"So, indefinitely, then," Cassius said, thinking. "Maybe they changed it. Maybe they changed the formula of Venom, and the new stuff they're shipping is their new product."

"It's possible," Aqualad nodded.

"Helicopter's coming," Superboy reported.

"Megan, check in with Robin and Kid Flash," Cassius said.

Megan nodded and added their link. _"Robin, Kid Flash, any news?"_

_"Perfect timing,"_ Robin responded. _"I was about to try to radio you. I forgot we were jammed. Listen, we found a chemical formula for the product they're shipping. It's Venom mixed with the Blockbuster formula. Combined, it's three times stronger than normal Venom, and it's permanent."_

_"Understood,"_ Aqualad said, as he had also been added, though Superboy had declined. "Megan, head outside, invisible, and wait for the buyer. When they arrive, send us a telepathic image, if you can. If not, describe them."

"Right," Megan nodded.

She turned invisible and flew away as they all moved to a catwalk over the storage room, and a few minutes later, the image arrived. Cassius covered his mouth to stifle himself as he swore harshly, the word echoing through all of their minds as a shout.

_"What?"_ Megan asked.

"Sportsmaster," Aqualad said. "You know him?"

_"He's with the Shadows,"_ Cassius growled telepathically so that Megan would hear the warning as well.

"We have to warn Red Tornado," Aqualad said.

"We can't," Cassius reminded him. "Our comms are jammed."

"We need a plan, now!" Aqualad growled.

"I have a suggestion," Bane said, then shouted a battle cry as he leapt off the catwalk, taking down one of two cultists below them, then shoving the other's gun into the air just as it went off.

"What is he-" Aqualad was cut off by a loud roar behind them and a massive behemoth of a man exploding through the window, and the wall above and below it, behind them.

The three of them scattered as he smashed the catwalk, landing on the ground and staring at him. He had orange hair, grey, scaled skin, thicker scales on his knuckles, and his skin was split open on his right shoulder reaching down across his torso in front and back, then a smaller split just below it, exposing his muscles.

"Well, I'm definitely not using Kobra Venom," Cassius said, forming the armor around his arms and legs into goo and enlarging his hands a bit.

The massive thing roared and stomped toward them just as the door opened, revealing Kobra, Cassius assumed, Sportsmaster, who instantly glared at Cassius, and several other cultists.

"Destroy them!" Kobra snapped.

The behemoth roared, lunging, only for Superboy to grab him around the middle, then Cassius to slam a punch into its face, rocking it backward. Then, it slammed a punch into Cassius's head and launched him away before it grabbed Superboy and hurled him aside. Aqualad formed a shield from his water in time to block a hail of bullets, then stuck his other water bearer through it just long enough to send a solid blast of water into a cultist's chest, then another. Cassius stood, sending out his goo arms and drilling a massive fist into an entire line of cultists just as Megan hurled another group with her telekinesis. However, a moment later, Sportsmaster hurled a javelin at Megan, who was still visible as a blur if Cassius looked carefully. Megan avoided the spear, but it exploded beside her, hurling her. Just as it did, the behemoth punched Superboy across the room and Cassius launched himself at it, drilling a punch of his own into its face, sending it staggering backward before he drilled another fist into its face, then planted a foot solidly between its legs. It shouted in pain, dripping before Cassius grabbed it and spun, hurling it into the cultists still shooing at Aqualad, knocking most down and stunning a couple of them. Everyone ducked into cover, Kid Flash arriving just in time to kick several cultists as they stepped out to shoot Aqualad, then ducking into cover as well.

_"We need to regroup,"_ Aqualad said.

_"Busy,"_ Robin said.

Just then the behemoth leapt at them and Cassius stepped out, his armor deflecting a dozen shots as he send a massive goo fist exploding into the behemoth, launching it, then stepped back into cover again. Three bullets that had managed to break through his armor dropped to the ground and his wounds sealed, his armor regenerating instantly.

"Not bad," Kid Flash said.

_"Robin, now!"_ Aqualad ordered.

Just then, cultists began to round the massive metal containers they were using for cover and Aqualad sent out a water whip to knock most of them out, Cassius using a goo whip to drop the rest.

_"We need to retreat,"_ Aqualad said. _"Kid, clear a path!"_

Kid Flash took off, dropping all of the cultists in between them and the nearest exit before Cassius formed a massive goo wall, allowing them to run behind it before retracting the goo as he followed. They made it to the mine shaft, only to turn the wrong way, before the behemoth burst out of the doors behind them, along with a group of cultists, only for Cassius's left hand to snap a goo whip against the cultists and drop them, and his right fist to explode into the behemoth's face at the same time as Superboy's left, sending him crashing backward along the tunnel. Then, they turned and sprinted after the others.

"Superboy, the support beams!" Aqualad shouted back at them. Superboy and Cassius each picked a wall and began to smash the beams as they ran.

After three each, the tunnel began to collapse. They slowed to a stop as the collapse ended. Aqualad pulled out a red light stick and cracked it, lighting up the tunnel before dropping it.

"How could my first mission as leader go so wrong?" Robin asked.

"Because you're _not_ the leader!" Cassius snapped, turning Robin away from the wall of debris and pinning him to the tunnel wall with a goo hand, pinning Kid Flash beside him. "I'm going to make this _very_ clear! _Neither_ of you is the leader, because _neither_ of you is ready for it! You, Robin, are too independent, and you've only ever been taught to do things Batman's way. You don't work as a team, you take off without a word at the first chance, then tell no one what you're doing, where you are, and leave us all high and dry to deal with whatever comes up while you're off doing whatever the hell you want to! And _you_ Kid Flash, are so wrapped up in trying to prove you're better than Robin, and trying to outdo Robin at everything in order to prove _you_ should be the leader, that you _also_ ran off on your own and left us high and dry _twice_! One of them blew our cover not five minutes into the mission, and then the next just as soon as we got into the factory where stealth was the most important! You two were so caught up in your little competition for leadership, that _both_ of you acted like children, screwed the mission completely, abandoned the team you were supposedly trying to lead, and then got into arguments about which of you was wrong _every time_! The _only_ person here who's been acting like a leader is Aqualad, so from this moment forward, _he_ is the leader! You both _will_ do what he says, or else you _both_ will be leaving this island unable to walk or eat solid food for a month!"

Both swallowed hard and nodded. Cassius released them, retracting his goo.

"Then I accept the burden until you are ready to lift it from my shoulders," Aqualad said, setting a hand on Robin's shoulder. "You were born to lead this team. Maybe not now, but soon."

"Alright, our first priority is preventing that shipment from leaving this island," Aqualad said.

"Funny," Robin said, crossing his arms. "I had the same thought."

"Let's talk about it on the move," Cassius said. "This tunnel has to let out somewhere."

The others all nodded and they turned, following the tunnel at a run.

* * *

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	14. Chapter 14

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Salvaged Operation

Cassius smirked as Kid Flash shot past Bane, swiping the detonator for the bombs he'd placed around the mouth of the tunnel to kill them with. He'd meant to have them either stop Kobra or die so that the League would stop Kobra instead. As both plans had failed, he'd planned to kill them himself, including having injected himself with Venom. However, just as he turned to try and punch Kid Flash, Megan lifted him into the air with her telekinesis, Super Boy stepping forward.

"Finally," Superboy grinned. "Drop him."

Megan complied and Superboy drilled a punch into his face, knocking him out. Cade held out a hand, the goo still attached to Bane's back, which he'd used the Venom strength to break free of, reaching up to rejoin with his hand.

"Alright," Cassius said. "I'll handle Sportsmaster when we get back to the helicopter."

"Alright," Aqualad nodded. "Kid Flash, you'll go first to distract the cultists and cause chaos. Cassius will deal with Sportsmaster. The rest of us will reinforce Kid Flash when we arrive."

Everyone nodded and Cassius transformed himself into goo, coating Kid Flash's torso.

"Okay, that's gross," Kid Flash said.

_"Bulletproof, though,"_ Cassius said. _"And light. Drop me off by the helicopter."_

"Gotcha," Kid Flash nodded, pulling his goggles down.

Then, he took off. As soon as he was close enough, Cassius released him and shifted back, landing on his feet in a low crouch, leaning in the direction he came from and skidding sideways to a stop in front of Sportsmaster.

"Sorry, Sportsmaster," Cassius said. "Gonna have to stop you. Nothing personal, to you or your bosses."

"Do you know who I work for?" Sportsmaster asked.

"I do," Cassius nodded. "Do _you_ know who _I_ work for?"

"I do," Sportsmaster said, crouching and readying himself. "I have to get a sample off of this island, and you _will not_ stop me."

"We'll see about that," Cassius smirked, then reformed his mask.

Then, Sportsmaster grabbed an energy rifle designed to look like a crossbow from the ground, opening fire at Cassius, only for Cassius's training with both Deadshot and Cain to kick in, allowing him to evade the shots and close in. Finally, Sportsmaster flipped over a punch, kicking him in the back before blasting him several times. Just as he did, Superboy crashed down off tot he side, challenging the behemoth, only for Aqualad to begin using water from a stream nearby to blast the behemoth, forcing him away from Superboy and keeping him from fighting. Then, Superboy turned to deal with Sportsmaster alongside Cassius, only for Sportsmaster to begin spraying him with smaller energy blasts. Cassius spun, stretching a goo hand up into the air and swiped downward at Sportsmaster, the hand cracking the ground but missing as Sportsmaster dove aside. As he stood, he flipped backward, throwing an explosive into the ground to stun Megan, then caught her around the neck from behind. Superboy moved to rescue her, only to again be sprayed. Cassius shot forward, but Sportsmaster hurled Megan into him, running for the helicopter, still spraying Superboy. Then, just as he was stepping onto it, Cassius tackled him to the floor.

"Take out out, then blast me off the helicopter with the case," Cassius said.

Sportsmaster complied, and as Cassius bounced back down the ramp, case in-hand, Sportsmaster lifted off, flying away quickly.

"He's getting away!" Superboy said.

"It's fine," Cassius said. "I got this." He held up the case of Kobra-Venom.

"He's also not getting away," Megan said. "I got the bomb in place."

"Good," Cassius said, just as she detonated it, blasting the side of the chopper open.

A moment later, Sportsmaster bailed out, deploying a parachute and falling toward the trees. As he did, Aqualad electrocuted the behemoth to knock him out, and they all turned to Kobra just as he pinned Robin to the ground with his foot.

"I am plagued by mosquitos," Kobra said as they all turned toward him.

"Good!" Robin snapped. "Cause this mosquito is very concerted over your pain!"

Cassius rolled his eyes just as Robin threw Kobra's foot off and flipped backward to his feet, retreating back to them. Robin's habit was annoying. Case and point, he had accused Kobra of looking disconcerted about them being there earlier when he was sabotaging the helicopter to delay Sportsmaster, then when Kobra had initially begun to beat Robin in a fight easily, he had accused Robin of the same. So, in keeping with Robin's habit, he had found a way to use the word concerted as an insult. Another example from earlier in the month was when he had said he and Kid Flash were going to completely overwhelm Cassius during a two-on-one sparring match, then Cassius had made the mistake of correcting them after taking them down the first time, and saying he had meant _underwhelm_. So, later on, Robin for the rest of their failed attempt to beat Cassius, Robin had repeatedly asked Cassius if he was whelmed yet.

"Another time, then," Kobra said, stepping backward into the trees as they all prepared to fight.

Robin darted forward, but after a moment of looking around, he sighed, stepping back and shaking his head, then he smiled. "We picked the right guy to lead. Automatically making you the right guy to explain this mess to Batman." He gestured at the burning Venom factory behind them.

"That's easy," Cassius said. "Robin and Kid Flash bickering about wanting to be the leader screwed the mission and compromised us. Aqualad took command, adapted, and we competed the mission according to the situation with admirable success."

Robin's laugh stopped and he grumbled, glaring at Cassius for a moment before sighing. "Let's just go home."

Megan nodded and flew the Bio-Ship over, everyone climbing on and flying back to the cave. A few days later, once Batman had arrived, they were all gathered in the briefing room for the ass chewing.

"A simple recon mission!" Batman snapped. "_Observe_ and report!" He began to walk down the line, of which only Cassius looked anything other than ashamed, in this case bored. "You're each received a written evaluation detailing your _many_ mistakes! Until then..." his tone and bearing went from furious to cold stoic like someone had flipped a switch, "good job."

Everyone stared at him in surprise, though Cassius bordered more on incredulous.

"No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy," Batman said, turning and walking away. "How you adjust to the unforeseen is how you determine success, and how you choose who leads determines character."

Aqualad and Robin both smirked, though Cassius's eye twitched at the memory of Robin and Kid Flash's behavior. Then, Batman left and Kid Flash and Megan both breathed a sigh of relief. Cassius shook his head, turning and walking away.

"Miss Martian," Cassius said, pausing by the door. "If you have some time, I have something I need to take care of, and I still have to be escorted."

Megan nodded. "Sure."

They headed to the Bio-Ship. Cassius directed her to the town where his former family were buried, Megan instantly recognizing it from his memories. As they walked, he pulled his phone out.

"I also have to call in," Cassius said, dialing Deathstroke. "You're sure you don't mind me doing this?"

Megan nodded. "You're not telling them anything they don't know, and it's for a good cause."

"That's true," Cassius said, finger hovering over the call button. "More accurately, you're sure you don't mind hiding it from the Justice League?"

"I don't mind as long as it doesn't cause trouble," Megan said.

Cassius nodded and pressed call, holding the phone to his ear.

"Your report had better be damn good," Deathstroke said. "The Light is _not_ pleased."

"I had to fight against Sportsmaster to avoid any suspicion," Cassius said. "But I also made sure he got the sample he needed for the Light." He held a hand up to tell Megan to wait. "The Justice League believes their mission was a success, and that Sportsmaster went away empty-handed."

"I see," Deathstroke said. "Do they trust you?"

"The team does," Cassius said. "I doubt the Justice League does, but I'm making progress."

"Very well," Deathstroke said. "I'll pass your report along. Tread carefully in matters related to the Light and the Shadows from now on."

"As carefully as I can," Cassius said, then hung up, putting his phone away. "The sample he took back was a single dose, and I gat Batman the rest of the samples I kept from Santa Prisca in order for the Justice League to create an antidote to it."

Megan nodded. "Any updates on Cassandra and Rose?"

"Nothing," Cassius said. "Not yet, at least. Cassandra's going to be sent on her first job soon. I may have to move up my plans when she does. She doesn't have the heart of a killer."

Megan nodded as Cassius turned into the usual flower shop, having adopted his old life's body on the flight.

"Hello again," the girl behind the counter smiled. "You never miss a day, do you?"

"I try not to," Cassius said, grabbing a particularly colorful bouquet and paying on the way out, having memorized the price.

She thank him, and he waved before he and Megan continued down the road, Cassius knowing full well that girl at the counter was staring at Megan in confusion.

"What will you done if the League won't accept them?" Megan asked. "Or if they don't want to join the team?"

"Assuming they're both willing to leave with me, I can get them to agree to join the team," Cassius said. "As for the League accepting them, I'll cross that bridge when I come to it."

"And when the Shadows send assassins after you?" Megan asked. "You know an awful lot for them to just let you go."

"They won't let me go," Cassius said. "But I don't care about that. I'm only concerned with getting Cassandra and Rose to safety. Once that's done, the Shadows can have me for all I care. I'm just a living pile of goo anyway."

"That's not true!" Megan said. "You're our friend! And you're important to Cassandra!"

Cassius sighed, kneeling in front of his wife's grave and setting the flowers down. "You wouldn't understand. You know who you are. You may be able to shapeshift, but you still have your own identity. I have a fake name given to me, my true form is black snot, and when I change my form, I'm not just changing my appearance. My goo has no cells. I've checked. My powers completely erase me, then recreate me as something else. I'm literally a different person every time I shapeshift. If I turned into someone to give them a blood transplant, it would actually be _their_ blood. I don't exist. Even my name is proof. Do you know what the name Cassius means?"

"No," Megan said, shaking her head.

"Hollow," Cassius said. "Empty. Nothing."

"That's not true," Megan said. "Even if that _was_ true when they gave you that name, it's not true anymore. You're not hollow anymore. You have years of memories, relationships, and emotions now. That's who you are."

Cassius was silent for a long while before sighing and standing. "Come on. We should get back before we're missed."

Megan sighed and nodded and they turned, beginning to head back to the ship.

* * *

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	15. Chapter 15

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Schooled

Cassius raised an eyebrow as a large circle of the floor below Black Canary turned white. She was going to be teaching them, most of them, hand-to-hand combat. She had even stopped Superboy from walking out on it.

"I consider it an honor to be your teacher," Black Canary said, turning toward them. "I'll throw a lot at you. Everything I've learned from my own mentors-" she winced as she was taking off her jean jacket, her bandaged left bicep apparently hurting to move around, "-ugh, and my own bruises." She held a hand to it for a moment.

"What happened?" Megan asked.

"The job," Black Canary said, tossing her jacket away. "Now, combat is about controlling conflict, putting the battle on your terms. You should always be acting. Never _reacting_. I'll need a sparring partner."

"Right here!" Kid Flash volunteered instantly, mouth full of banana even as his hand shot into the air. "Yeah!" He walked into the ring and finished the banana in one bite. "After this..." he paused, tossing the peel into a trash can. "-swish, I'll show you my moves." He pointed at her as his suggestive tone tugged her lips into a smirk.

She nodded and shot forward into a jab so fast Cassius almost missed the strike. Kid Flash blocked it, only for her to drop, sweeping his legs out from under him and winning the brief match.

He groaned. "Hurts so good."

Cassius shook his head. She was better than he expected.

"Good block, but did anyone, besides Cassius, see what he did wrong?" Black Canary asked.

"Oo! Oo!" Robin grinned. "He hit on teacher and got served?"

"Dude!" Kid Flash complained in a shouted whisper.

"Mistake number one, yes, but not the one she was referring to," Cassius said.

"He allowed me to dictate the terms of-"

"Oh please," Superboy groaned. "With my powers, the battle's _always_ on my terms. I'm a living weapon, and this is a waste of my time."

"Oh, this is gunna be good," Cassius grinned. "Kid, you don't know what a living weapon is."

"Alright Superboy," Black Canary smirked. "Prove it."

Superboy raised an eyebrow and walked into the ring. Cassius mimed holding a camera to his face as the two combatants readied themselves. Then, Superboy threw a punch and the fight was over. Black Canary caught his arm and hurled him across the ring. Robin pointed and laughed, only for Aqualad to nudge him, Robin covering his mouth but continuing to laugh. Superboy rolled over, snarling.

"You're angry," Black Canary said. "Good, but don't react. Channel that anger into-"

Superboy charged, shouting in rage and throwing a haymaker, and she flipped over him. He spun, swinging a backfist at her, only for her to sweep his legs. She offered him her hand but he swatted it away.

"That's it!" Superboy snarled, standing. "I'm done!"

"Training is mandatory," Black Canary said, reaching out to catch his shoulder, only for him to spun, slapping her hand away again.

Suddenly, the screen Batman usually called them from switched on. "Batman to the Cave. Five hours ago, a new menace attacked Green Arrow and Black Canary."

An image appeared on the upper left part of the screen, showing a male alien, or maybe a robot, with pale skin, pointed ears, and short orange hair.

"The attacker was capable of studying, then duplicating the powers and abilities of its opponents," Batman said as, on the screen, the person, Cassius was pretty sure it was a robot with black legs and a skin-colored upper body, caught Superman, then began to swing him around by the cape, knocking several other Justice League members away, then used Superman's laser vision to block and detonate a pair of explosive arrows, only for Batman to pause the video. "Green Arrow called in reinforcements, which nearly proved disastrous as our foe gained more and more power with each new combatant."

"Whoa," Kid Flash said. "One guy with the powers of the entire League?"

"In the end, it took eight Leaguers _four hours_ to defeat and dismember the android," Batman said.

"An android?" Robin asked, stepping forward. "Who made it, T.O. Morrow?"

"Good guess, Robin, but Red Tornado doesn't think so," Batman said.

"The technology bears the signature of...Professor Ivo," Martian Manhunter said, having come with Black Canary to check up on Miss Martian, though Cassius suspected now it was so that she wouldn't be alone if another android showed up.

"Ivo?" Aqualad asked. "But Ivo's dead!"

"So we all thought, or hoped," Black Canary said.

"To make certain this threat is permanently neutralized, we're sending two trucks carrying the android's parts to two separate STAR Labs facilities in Boston and New York for immediate evaluation," Batman said. "Every precaution is being taken. We'll have four additional decoy trucks to create confusion in case Ivo, or anyone, tries to recover the remains. You will split into undercover teams to safeguard the two real trucks."

"Yes!" Kid Flash shouted. "Road trip!"

"So now we take out your trash?" Superboy asked.

"You had something better to do?" Batman challenged.

"Coordinates received," Aqualad said. "On our way."

They all turned and ran toward the Bio-Ship. As they ran into the cockpit, the ship grew them each a seat, including Superboy, though he wasn't there.

"Would you mind making mine a throne?" Cassius asked, his chair growing into a throne instantly. "Much better." He paused. "I don't suppose a reclining throne would be an option?"

The chair again changed to fulfill his request.

"Now, see, this is why you're the best ship ever," he smiled, tapping the arm of the chair affectionately.

"You made friends with the ship?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, it was easy," Cassius said. "I just had to be a friend to Megan."

The others looked between the two before Robin smirked.

"Never would have thought I'd hear you say you have a friend," Robin said.

"I'm not heartless," Cassius said. "I just have a dark past."

"You mean you were a contract killer," Robin said.

"Professional cleaner," Cassius corrected him.

"Call it what you like, it's still murder!" Robin snapped.

"Enough," Aqualad said. "Cassius is not that person anymore."

"Yeah, Cassius is a good person," Megan said.

"What the hell did he do to gain you two's trust?" Robin asked.

"We gave him the chance," Aqualad said. "Instead of constantly suspecting him of being a traitor and judging him based on his past along, you should try and understand that he is trying to change and make things right."

"As if," Kid Flash said. "He only joined us because he wants to kill the Shadows he used to work with."

"That's not the only reason," Cassius said.

"What else is?" Robin asked.

"Wonder Woman's hot," Cassius said, smirking.

"Sure," Robin said. "I'm sure that's the reason. I'm sure the secret intelligence you're planning to acquire later in order to tell the Shadows has nothing to do with it."

"I mean, hey, if you want to tell me where the Shadows all live, I'll gladly start making house calls," Cassius said.

"Enough," Aqualad finally said again, just as Superboy finally joined them. "We are all here. Let's go."

Megan nodded and turned her chair around, the others all being strapped in, and took off.

* * *

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	16. Chapter 16

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Road Rage

Cassius watched the last of the android parts be loaded up. They weren't following the trucks with the Bio-Ship. They were splitting in half and taking motorcycles. Cassius would be riding with Megan and Kid Flash to Boston, while Robin, Superboy, and Aqualad headed for New York.

"Everyone ready?" Aqualad asked as the trucks all started.

"Ready," Cassius nodded. "Miss Martian, Kid Flash, while we're escorting, I'll be taking command."

"Okay," Megan nodded.

"Yeah, I don't know if I trust the assassin to be in charge," Kid Flash said.

"Then you'd better start," Cassius said as the trucks began to leave. "Time to go."

He and Megan pulled out of the trees they were hidden in behind the truck and after a moment, Kid Flash caught up.

"Seriously, why you?" Kid Flash asked.

"Because he has the most experience," Megan said. "He knows how to react to changing situations. He's also a lot older than us."

"Wait, you are?" Kid Flash asked. "How old?"

"I woke up with my goo powers and no memory about...Oh Christ...fifteen or so years ago now," Cassius said. "I don't age if I don't want to, and when I met woke up the Shadow who trained me had brown hair that was starting to turn grey. Now he's got a head full of silver hair, starting to turn white, and knee problems."

"Okay, so you have as many years of memory as me," Kid Flash said.

"Yeah," Cassius said. "Fifteen years as an assassin. You have _how_ many as a super hero? And beyond that, how many years do you actually remember?"

Wally hesitated before sighing. "Fair point. Fine. You can be in charge."

They rode for several hours in silence before anyone spoke again.

"Do you two think Superboy's okay?" Megan asked. "I wasn't reading his mind, I swear, but...anger flowed off him in waves."

Kid Flash laughed. "Surfed that wave. Just give him space. Me? Stick as close as you want." He pulled his bike closer to hers.

"Despite his horrifying attempts at flirting, he's right about giving Superboy space," Cassius said. "He doesn't know who he is either, and while I've had fifteen years to get used to not knowing, he's had a couple months. He needs time to adjust to being a person and figure out how to deal with his emotions."

"I guess you're right," Megan said. "I wish I could help, though."

"I'm sure you'll think of something," Cassius said. "If you want to help, do something to show you're a friend and concerned about him, but that you're not going to pry or force him to talk about it."

"How do I do that?" Megan asked.

"Easiest way would be to tell him," Cassius said.

Megan nodded, sinking into her thoughts. Just then, about a dozen black monkey robots with glowing green lights from their eyes and between their bodies metal plates shot out of the corn field they were passing, jetpacks on the monkeys' backs flying them to the truck.

"Aqualad, out truck's under attack by robot monkeys," Cassius said over the communicator.

"Our too," Aqualad said. "Protect it!"

"Will do," Cassius said, disconnecting. "So, since you two are the only babysitters I have, yes or no to breaking the toys?"

"Yes," Kid Flash said. "Break them. Break them all."

Cassius grinned. "Megan. Pull some into the air."

She did as instructed, lifting five, and he raised his arm, each of his fingers firing a goo spear into the monkeys' heads before the goo shot back to him, rejoining with his back.

"Nice!" Kid Flash said.

"You should see what I can do against humans," Cassius smirked, then revved his bike, speeding up next to the truck.

Once he was next to it, he jumped, using an extra set of arms made out of goo to lift himself onto the truck before swinging his bike like a club, smashing three monkeys with it, though his bike was also smashed. More monkeys began to fly toward them as several leapt at him, only for his four arms, all encased in goo now, to each grab and crush one, then slam the remains down on four more on the ground as they charged. He hurled their remains off the truck just before a pair of lasers blasted into his back. He yelped, spinning, only for the monkey's eye lasers to fire again, blasting Cassius's own eyes. He shouted in pain, staggering away, and holding his hands to his face, only to form new eyes on his chest, seeing six moving to grab him. Goo spikes erupted from his torso and stabbed them as his eyes finished healing and he let the extras return to being goo as he opened his normal eyes. His vision was blurred for a second, and as it sharpened, a wall of monkeys formed in front of him.

"Oh shit," he sighed, before a wall of lasers exploded into him, launching him backward off the truck.

"Void!" Kid Flash shouted.

"Missions," Cassius groaned, giving his body a few moments to heal from the second degree burns covering his front half.

Once he was healed, he stood, forming a goo motorcycle and shot after the truck. It wasn't as fast as a real one, but it could hit forty five. Fortunately, the truck had slowed considerably as it was being attacked, so he was able to reach it quickly. He used goo to pull himself back up to the top just as Megan landed on the roof with two extra arms growing from her sides and one from the left side of her head, startling Kid Flash, who recoiled suddenly and ended up startling Megan.

"Focus!" Cassius said, dropping into the truck and looking around, only to receive yet another laser blast to the face.

He shouted in pain, just as it suddenly began to get very, very warm, and he smelled smoke. He swore instantly, trying to form himself a new set of eyes, but his goo wasn't responding. He groaned, forcing his eyes open and agony lanced through him as the multicolored blur before him swam in front of his face. He groaned as he saw that fire filled the bed of the truck. He was against the wall nearest the cab, and he had about three feet of space before the flames. He collapsed, groaning and holding his hands to his eyes. He lifted a hand to try and form goo around it to free himself, but nothing happened. Then, suddenly, there was a shriek of metal being ripped apart above him and he suddenly shot into the air and stopped. After a moment, his goo began to respond properly again and his eyes healed quickly. He opened them, blinking several times before looking around, seeing Megan giving him a worried look.

"Are you alright?" Megan asked.

"I'm fine," Cassius said. "They caught me in the eyes before I could react. What about the others?"

"They lost their cargo too," Kid Flash said as Megan set Cassius on his feet and landed in front of him. "And then Superboy took off after them and ditched his comms. "

Cassius nodded, raising a hand to his ear. "Aqualad, orders?"

"Robin is tracking the parts through GPS trackers inside of them," Aqualad said. "It is how they were able to target the correct trucks."

"The parts are converging on...Gotham City," Robin's voice was quiet as he finished.

"Megan and I aren't fast enough to make it in time," Cassius said, then glanced at Kid Flash, who instantly groaned but nodded. "I'm going to have Kid Flash run there while wearing me, like on Santa Prisca. We'll meet you there and Megan will join us as soon as she can."

"Understood," Aqualad said. "Robin's sending the exact coordinates now."

"Got 'em," Kid Flash said. "Alright. Hop on. The Wally Express is ready to depart."

"Be careful," Megan said. _"You're still not a hundred percent from that fire."_

"We'll be fine," Cassius said before forming himself into goo and encasing Wally's torso.

"We're on our way," Kid Flash said, beginning to run.

Time ticked by slower than Cassius would have hoped. He wasn't sure how long he could remain as goo without negative side effects, but after about an hour, he suddenly began to feel himself drifting off. He groaned, trying to sit up, only to remember he was goo. And then, he wasn't. He crashed to the ground, bouncing and rolling to a stop, and Kid Flash skidded to a stop, looking back at him.

"You alright?" Kid Flash asked.

"W...What?" He asked, blinking several times before shaking his head, clearing the cobwebs. "Yeah. Go on ahead. I don't think I can hold my goo form much longer without it being permanent."

Kid Flash nodded and took off again. Cassius remained on the ground for a few more minutes before pushing himself up, and taking several long breaths before forming himself a set of wings and taking off after him, this time flying straight, rather than following the roads, as Kid Flash had been. Finally, after the sun had sent, he finally smashed through a window into Gotham's main high school in time to see the android, fully reassembled, turn intangible, allowing Kid Flash, who had been about to get crushed in a bear hug, to fall, also allowing the arrow it had been avoiding, to pass through its head and stab into the ground.

"Access Black Canary," the android said, just in time to use the same throw on Superboy as Black Canary had when they sparred.

Then, Cassius's fist exploded into the android's face, sending it exploding across the gymnasium. As it began to stand, an explosive disk below it went off, hurling it into the rafters. Cassius leapt at it, only for it to raise its arm.

"Access, Captain Atom," the android said, less than a second before a beam of golden energy flashed from its hand, blasting him and sending him exploding back into the ground.

He groaned, beginning to push himself up, only for it to switch to Black Canary. His gut dropped instantly, just before its Canary Cry blasted into him, sending him exploding backward into the wall of the gym, a shriek of agony ripping out of his mouth in a spray of blood. Then, Aqualad, who'd been unconscious against the opposite wall, finally woke, wrapping a water whip around it and electrocuting it. However, after a moment, it switched to Aquaman and swung Aqualad around into all three of the others by the whip. Cassius forced himself to his feet, blood running down his chin and gasping for breath.

"Access Black Canary," the android said again.

"Oh for Christ's sake," Cassius groaned.

Just before it could shriek, however, Kid Flash slammed a barrage of punches into it then sped away, leaving several explosive disks where he'd stuck them. They exploded and the android crashed into the bleachers on one side, only to walk back out of them a moment later. Cassius groaned as his legs wobbled and gave out, dropping him to his knees.

"This isn't going well," Robin said.

"Superman," the android said, eyes glowing just in time for Kid Flash to tackle Robin out of the way of the android's heat vision, which set off an explosion against the bleachers behind Robin.

"Yawn," Ivo, who was sitting in the bleachers near the wall, said. "Normally Amazo would study your powers during combat and try to replicate them, but you're all such poor copies of the originals that there's no point. And then the kid with the goo powers just isn't a threat."

"Everyone keeps telling me I'm a bad copy," Superboy said. "It makes me so angry!" He shouted in rage, leaping across the room and punching at Ivo, who shrieked in fear, the two monkey robots with him flying him out of the way.

"Great, he's gone ballistic again," Kid Flash said.

"Maybe not!" Robin said.

"Get Ivo!" Aqualad said, turning and running over to Cassius. "Are you alright?"

"No," Cassius said. "My entire body's scrambled. I'm down for the count on this one. Damn."

Just then, as the other three alternated between attacking Ivo and the android, the android turned intangible to avoid one of Robin's disks, only for Superboy to hold his arm through the android's head as it returned to being tangible, making its head explode a moment later. Cassius sighed, rolling onto his side and clutching at his torso as his entire body throbbed, every organ in his torso feeling like it had shredded glass in it.

"Help me disassemble his body!" Robin said urgently.

"Dude, the guy has no head," Kid Flash said.

"Don't take any chances," Aqualad said.

"Superboy!" Megan said, flying through the door and landing beside him. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Superboy said, glancing at Robin. "Feeling the aster."

Robin grinned, then looked to Cassius. "You okay, Void?"

Megan glanced over at him before gasping harshly. "Oh my God! Cassius!" She flew over and knelt beside him. "I told you not to push yourself!"

"This isn't from that," Cassius groaned. "I got hit with a Canary Cry, and it scrambled my insides."

"Are you okay?" Megan asked.

"No," Cassius groaned. "But I will be."

"Hey, where's Ivo?" Kid Flash asked, staring around at the now empty gymnasium.

"He split," Cassius groaned. "About the same time you blue up the android's head. Fuck I need alcohol."

"I have the Bio-Ship outside," Megan said.

"Good," Aqualad said. "Let's get the android, and Cassius, on the ship. We can use it to drop off the pieces. We'll disassemble it on the way."

The others nodded and Megan lifted Cassius with her telekinesis while Superboy carried the android. Then, a few minutes later, they were heading for New York.

* * *

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	17. Chapter 17

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Newbie

Cassius groaned, dropping onto his bed again. Three days. It had been three days and he still felt like shit. It was official. He was _never_ pissing off Black Canary. The others were all out enjoying the beach, except for Kid Flash, who was at school. Cassius wished he could go to the beach too, but moving more than to go to the kitchen or the bathroom was almost enough to make him pass out, and his room had _its own_ bathroom. Just then, his door opened, Megan walking in wearing a blue button-up shirt and white shorts. She knelt beside him, feeling his forehead and giving him a concerned look.

"No change?" she asked.

"It's getting better," Cassius said. "I'll be back to normal inside a week."

She nodded just as Batman's voice called them all to the briefing room. He groaned, only for her to lift him with her telekinesis so he wouldn't have to walk. She floated him to the briefing room where Aqualad had a fold-up chair waiting and set him in it, Cassius sighing and ignoring Batman's glare.

"Well, at least we know we can stop you if you turn on us," Batman said flatly. "Your team is getting a new member. Artemis."

Cassius looked up, following everyone else's gaze to a girl about the others' age with a tight, Green Arrow-style costume with her toned midriff exposed, no sleeves, a masked hood over her upper face, her blonde hair sticking out of a hole in the back of it in a ponytail that reached just past her butt, and a compound bow. Her eyes locked with his and she smirked.

"Somebody get worked over in a sparring session?" Artemis smirked, sounding arrogant and cocky.

"No," Cassius said. "An enemy we fought during a mission had an ability I neglected to compensate for."

"So you got sloppy," Artemis translated. "Guess you're the incompetent one, then."

"Actually, he's one of our best," Robin said.

"Recognize Kid Flash, B-Zero-Three," the Zeta Tube's feminine announcement voice said.

"He's the incompetent one," Cassius said, just as Kid Flash appeared, holding a cooler, beach ball, umbrella, stereo, surf board, and folding chair, dressed in a pair of yellow swimming trunks and sunglasses with a towel around his neck and sunscreen on his nose.

"The wall man is here!" Kid Flash cheered over his stereo's music. "Now, let's get this party star-" he ran forward, only to trip over the umbrella's pole, crashing to the ground and sending his beach ball bouncing past Batman, everyone staring at him. "-ted?"

"Wall Man, huh?" Artemis smirked. "I love the uniform. What, exactly, are your powers?"

"I like her," Cassius smirked. "She's a bitch."

Artemis glared at him.

"Uh, who's this?" Kid Flash asked, walking over.

"Artemis, your new teammate," Artemis introduced herself, tone patronizing.

"Kid Flash, never heard of you," Kid Flash countered in a matching tone.

"Um, she's my new protégé," Green Arrow said, stepping forward and setting a hand on her shoulder.

"What happened to your old one?" Kid Flash asked.

"Recognize Speedy, B-Zero-Six," the Zeta tube announced, everyone turning to look as the tube's light faded and he walked over to them.

"Well for starters, he doesn't go by Speedy anymore," he growled. "Call me Red Arrow."

"How original," Cassius said sarcastically. "That's definitely not derivative at all."

"I wouldn't be talking if I were you, Void," Red Arrow said. "Every hero in the world knows how much you love loud noises, now."

Cassius grimaced.

"Uh, Roy," Green Arrow said. "You look..."

"Replaceable," Red Arrow growled.

"It's not like that," Green Arrow said. "You told me you were going solo."

"So why waste time finding a sub?" Red Arrow scoffed. "Can she even _use_ that bow?"

"Yes, she can," Artemis said, getting in Red Arrow's face, despite him being a full foot taller than her.

"Who are you!?" Kid Flash asked again.

She and Green Arrow both turned their heads just enough to be speaking to him as they both said she was Green Arrow's niece, then turned their heads back to Red Arrow.

"Another niece?" Robin grinned.

"But she is _not_ your replacement," Aqualad said. "We have always wanted you on the team, and we have no quota on archers."

"And if we did, you know who we'd pick," Kid Flash said.

"I vote the mildly attractive one who didn't threaten to kill me," Cassius said. "We need more chicks to level out the testosterone anyway."

"Excuse me!?" Artemis snapped.

"He's joking," Megan said. "Right Cassius? Say you're joking."

Cassius grunted noncommittally.

"Whatever," Artemis said, then smirked at Kid Flash. "Like it or not, Baywatch, I'm here to stay."

"You came to us for a reason," Aqualad said, looking to Red Arrow.

"Yeah, a reason named Dr. Serling Roquette," Red Arrow said.

"Nanorobotics genius and clay-tronics expert at Royal University in Star City!" Robin said after a moment of thinking, pulling up several screens. "Vanished two weeks ago!"

"Abducted two weeks ago," Red Arrow corrected. "By the League of Shadows. Void's old friends."

"Oh fuck," Cassius groaned.

"Whoa!" Robin said. "You want us to rescue her from the Shadows?"

"Please say no," Cassius groaned as Wally fist-bumped Robin while whispering "Hardcore!"

"I already rescued her," Red Arrow said, walking to the computer.

"Oh thank God," Cassius sighed.

"Only one problem," Red Arrow said.

"Fuck," Cassius groaned.

"Would you stop that!?" Batman snapped. "Go on."

"The Shadows had already coerced her into creating a weapon. Doc calls it, The Fog. Comprised of millions of microscopic robots. Nanotech infiltrators. Capable of disintegrating anything in their path. Concrete. Steel. Flesh. Bone. But its true purpose isn't mere destruction. It's theft. The infiltrators eat and store raw data from any computer system and deliver the stolen intel to the Shadows, providing them access to weapons, strategic defenses, cutting-edge science and tech!"

"Perfect for extortion, manipulation, power brokering," Artemis listed. "Yeah. Sounds like the Shadows."

"You forgot Assassinating," Cassius said. "Nanobots that dissolve targets would be invaluable. And damn-near impossible to fight."

"Like you know anything about the shadows, Artemis," Wally scoffed.

She smirked at him in silence.

"Who are you!?" Wally demanded.

"Roquette's working on a virus to render the Fog inert," Red Arrow continued.

"But if the Shadows know she can do that-" Robin began.

"They'll target her," Red Arrow finished. "Right now she's off the grid. I stashed her at the local high school's computer lab."

"You left her alone?" Green Arrow asked.

"She's safe enough for now," Red Arrow said.

"No, she's not," Cassius said. "The Shadows don't loose track of someone that easily."

"They do when they're busy hiding from an explosion," Red Arrow said.

"Yeah, definitely not talking about the grunts," Cassius said. "The important ones don't loose track of valuable assets that easily."

"If you want us to protect her, then let's, you and I, protect her," Green Arrow invited.

"You and I?" Red Arrow asked. "Don't you want to take your new protégé?"

Batman set a hand on Green Arrow's shoulder and Green Arrow nodded.

"You brought this to the team," Green Arrow said. "It's their mission. Which means it's hers now too."

Red Arrow scoffed. "Then my job's done."

"Recognized Speedy-" the Zeta Tube began.

"That's Red Arrow, B-Zero-Six," he corrected the machine. "Update."

Then, the Zeta Tube activated and he was gone. Kid Flash glared at Artemis and she turned away from him.

"Void, for obvious reasons, you're not going on this mission," Batman said. "Red Tornado will be here to keep an eye on you."

Cassius nodded. "Okay. Then I'm going to try to make it back to bed."

"We'll be heading out now," Aqualad said.

"Hope you feel better," Megan smiled supportively.

Cassius groaned as he stood, then limped away, right hand pressed tight to his abdomen, for what little good it did him. Finally, he made it back to his room and collapsed onto the bed, groaning and closing his eyes, only for his door to open and Red Tornado to step into the room and sit down on a chair.

"Can't you keep an eye on me with a camera?" Cassius asked.

"No," Red Tornado said. "I need to be where I can react if you do anything...not allowed."

Cassius groaned, rolling away from him. "Whatever. I'm in too much pain to care about the League's trust issues."

He closed his eyes, and within seconds, he was asleep.

* * *

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	18. Chapter 18

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Magic

Cassius winced and leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes and waiting for the throbbing to fade. He was mostly recovered, but every so often, his insides would flare up for a few moments. He'd been cleared for missions again, but he doubted he'd be able to go through one without the pain causing a problem. And he had enough of those. The Shadows were extremely displeased that the team stopped them. The only reason he was breathing now, was because Kid Flash had let it slip that he was hurt and recovering to one of the Shadows they fought, accidentally covering for his ass by letting them know he had nothing to do with it. He opened his eyes as Superboy threw Aqualad.

"Black Canary taught me that," Superboy said.

Just then, a hole opened in the roof, and Red Tornado floated down into the room. Within a second, Kid Flash was standing in front of him.

"Do you have a mission for us?" Kid Flash asked.

"Mission Assignments are the Batman's responsibility," Red Tornado said.

"Yeah, well, the Batman is with the Robin, doing the Dynamic Duo thing in Gotham," Kid Flash said, then pointed at Red Tornado. "But _you're_ headed somewhere, right? Hot date?" he pointed at Tornado with both hands then winked, adopting a terrible French accent, "or a mission?"

"_If we can_ be of help..." Aqualad offered.

Red Tornado turned away from them, a holographic keyboard and screen appearing. He typed for a moment before an elderly man in a suit with a gold-handled cane appeared on the screen. "This is Kent Nelson. A friend. He is one hundred and six years old."

"Guy doesn't look a day over ninety," Kid Flash joked.

"And he has been missing for twenty three days," Red Tornado continued. "Kent was a charter member of the Justice _Society_, the precursor to your mentors Justice _League_." As he spoke, Kent's image was replaced by Doctor Fate.

Doctor Fate was a god-like being with magical powers who would possess the body of anyone who put on the faceless gold helmet he inhabited, then use his powers to protect the order of the world. Or, at least, something like that. Cassius had never payed him that much attention.

"Of course!" Aqualad said. "Nelson was Earth's Sorcerer Supreme! He was Doctor Fate!"

Kid Flash snorted, leaning toward Artemis to whisper. "More like Doctor Fake. Guy knows a little advanced science, Dumbledore's it up to scare the bad guys and impress the babes." He made finger quotes around "Dumbledore."

"Kent may simply be on one of his...walk-abouts," Red Tornado said. "But he is caretaker to the Helmet of Fate, the source of the Doctor's mystic might, and it is unwise to leave such power unguarded."

"He is like the Great Sorcerer Priests and Priestesses of Mars," Megan said. "I would be honored to help find him."

Kid Flash's hand shot into the air instantly. "Me too!" He stepped forward. "_So_ honored I can barely stand it." He held up rock on devil horns with both hands. "Magic rocks."

"Take this," Red Tornado said, raising a small golden key with oddly shaped teeth. "It is the key to the Tower of Fate."

Aqualad accepted the key.

"What are the chances we both so admire the mystic arts?" Kid Flash asked Megan.

"About the same as the chances that anything that comes out of your mouth is true," Cassius spoke up finally, receiving a glare but ignoring it, wincing as his insides flared again. "If we're going to assume he was taken to get the helmet, I might have a theory who it could be. A couple, actually. Felix Faust, Klarion, and Wotan all stick out the most."

"That is entirely possible," Red Tornado said.

A few hours later, they were flying to a location Red Tornado gave them for the mission, which Cassius had been too busy being in pain to hear the importance of, and Artemis was needling Kid Flash about his false love of magic. Shortly after she finally gave up, Megan announced they'd reached the location, a massive empty lot. Cassius and the others stepped out of the ship and Cassius looked around. There was nothing, as Kid Flash reported a moment later when he returned, only to catch himself as he was discussing scientific methods of hiding the Tower of Fate with Artemis, switching to saying it was hidden with magic as Megan walked over.

As Artemis glared at Kid Flash, Aqualad walked forward, holding the key out in front of himself as though putting into a lock, and it clicked as it passed into an invisible handle. He twisted, and the tower appeared, a massive, square, brick building standing a hundred feet tall and the door being double their height. Aqualad pushed the door open and they all walked inside, looking around. The door closed and was gone, and the empty room was colder than Cassius expected.

Just then, a glowing, gold, ethereal Nelson formed in front of them. "Greetings. You've entered with a key but that power does not recognize you. Please state your purpose and intent."

"Magic security system," Cassius noted.

"We are true believers," Kid Flash lied, stepping forward, "here to find Doctor Fate."

The ghost frowned and faded. Then, the floor beneath their feet began to tremble and creak.

"Fuck yourself, Wally," Cassius said, just before the floor shattered and they fell into a circular pit with lava at the bottom.

Cassius held his hand out just as the heat reached them and his insides began to sear in pain, his goo failing to respond. He groaned, eyes squeezing shut and face contorting in pain, just in time for a hand to catch the back of his belt, jerking him to a stop. Then, Superboy shouted in pain as his feet skidded down into the lava just before he stopped. He yanked his feet out and glared at the lava.

"Those were my favorite boots," Superboy snarled. "This Nelson guy better be worth it."

Cassius curled into the fetal position where he was hanging as his insides throbbed, the pain growing worse slowly.

"Cassius!" Megan called out from off to the side, where she was hovering with Kid Flash.

"Are you alright?" Aqualad asked.

"F...Fine!" Cassius forced out through gritted teeth. "Can't you...tell?"

"Having trouble...maintaining altitude," Megan said as she and Kid Flash sank toward the lava slowly, sweat pouring down her face. "I'm so hot."

"You certainly are," Kid Flash said.

"I'm...going to...kill him!" Cassius snarled, then groaned as his insides throbbed.

"Wally!" Artemis snapped.

"Hey, inches above sizzling death, I'm entitled to speak my mind!" Kid Flash snapped back.

"We need to get them both out of here!" Aqualad said. "Me as well. All three of our physiologies are susceptible to extreme heat."

"Hello Megan," Megan panted as she and Kid Flash neared the lava. "We never truly...answered the question." She looked up at the surface. "Red Tornado sent us to see if Mr. Nelson...and the Helmet were safe!"

Suddenly, a stone floor closed over the lava and Superboy, Megan, and Kid Flash all dropped to the ground. Artemis began to lower herself, Aqualad, and Cassius to the ground with her grapple gun, and Superboy took Cassius once he was in reach, setting him down carefully.

"This platform," Aqualad said, kneeling and setting his hands down. "It should be red-hot, but it is cool to the touch."

"Don't...looks a...gift horse...in the mouth," Cassius said, still in agony.

"Just how weak to fire are you?" Kid Flash asked.

"It...boils my goo...and burns it," Cassius said. "Try injecting...boiling water...into every vein in your body."

"Yeah I think I'll pass," Kid Flash said.

Megan's legs wobbled slightly as she straightened up and Kid Flash wrapped an arm around her.

"Don't worry Megalicious," Kid Flash said. "I got you."

"Enough!" Artemis snapped, shoving him hard. "Your little 'Impress Megan At All Costs' game nearly got us all barbequed!"

"When did this become my fault?" Kid Flash asked.

"When you lied!" Cassius snarled, dragging himself to his feet, revealing the front of his clothes charred, since they were made up of his goo. "When you called yourself a true believer, and got us all thrown into a lava pit because you just _had_ to try to make yourself seem like everything about you matched Megan! It's your fault because you're so fucking desperate to impress a girl that ninety percent of the bullshit that comes out of your mouth could fertilize a corn field! Look at me, you ignorant, oblivious little brat! this is what happens when you care less about the mission than you do about your relationship status!"

Kid Flash stared at the burns on Cassius's body, which were very slowly shrinking. "Okay, fine. I lied about believing in magic! But magic is the real lie! A major load!"

"Wally, I studied for a year at the Conservatory of Sorcery in Atlantis," Aqualad said. "The mystic arts created the skin icons that power my Water Bearers."

"Dude, have you ever heard of _bioelectricity_?" Kid Flash asked. "Hey, in primitive cultures, _fire_ was once considered magical too! Today it's all just a bunch of tricks."

"You're pretty close-minded for a guy who can break the sound barrier in his sneakers," Artemis said.

"That's _science_!" Kid Flash said. "I recreated Flash's laboratory experiment and here I am!"

"Yeah," Cassius said. "There you are. Failed laboratory experiment with a third the speed and ability of the other Flashes, no ability to see what your narrow mind can't rationalize, and no concern for anything besides impressing a girl. A real gift to society."

"You know, you're not so great yourself," Kid Flash said.

"At least I can go one full mission without fucking it up for everyone else," Cassius said. "How do you explain me, then, Mr. Science? Every time I turn into goo, I _erase_ my cells. My goo is _in__organic_. How do you explain that?"

"Hey, I never said I have all the answers," Kid Flash said. "Only that everything can be explained by science."

"Let us test that theory," Aqualad said, reaching over to a trap door on the floor.

"Wait!" Kid Flash said. "The backdraft from the lava will roast us alive!"

Aqualad lifted it and a blast of cold air and snow blew up through it, wind blowing inside the area below them and Cassius able to see snow below them.

"It's snow!" Megan smiled.

"Christ that breeze feels amazing," Cassius said, moving to stand over the opening with his arms out to his sides to catch the cold air.

"Do you _ever_ get tired of being wrong?" Artemis asked.

"I'm going through first," Cassius said, dropping through the floor and feeling gravity shift to behind him.

He flipped, landing on his feet and stepped out of the way of the others as they dropped through the hatch that now floated in the air like a window. The others followed, and just as Kid Flash turned to look at the hatch, it shone gold and shrank out of existence. Cassius formed a snowball as Kid Flash huffed.

"Well?" Artemis asked.

"Ever head of string theory?" Kid Flash asked. "We're in a pocket dimension."

"I think you mean straws," Cassius said, throwing the snowball into Kid Flash's face. "Like the ones you're grasping at."

"What's that?" Megan asked suddenly, pointing to Nelson's cane, which was hovering off to the side, snow and ice beginning to build up on the bottom of it.

"That would be Nelson's cane," Cassius said.

"I think you mean magic wand," Kid Flash said sarcastically.

"Magic yes," Cassius said. "Wand, no."

Kid Flash sped over to it in time to grab it at the same time as Artemis.

"I got it," both said, just before the cane rose, glowing gold, both gasping. "I can't let go!"

Then, it streaked into the air and both of them vanished in a flash of light, along with the cane. Cassius sighed, kneeling down and scooping snow onto his burns.

"Does that help you heal?" Megan asked.

"In a roundabout sense, I suppose," Cassius said. "It's helping with the pain, and it cools the burns, which lets them heal faster. So, kind of."

"So, where to now?" Aqualad asked.

"Let's just pick a direction and walk until the tower gives us a way out," Cassius said. "If the tower wants us to help Nelson, it'll give us a set of stairs."

The others agreed and they began to walk. As they did, Megan and Aqualad discussed Kid Flash's complete refusal to believe in magic. Finally, a set of stairs appeared off tot he side, atop a tall hill, and with a door back into the tower at the top. They all walked over to it and climbed the stairs, re-entering the tower. However, the re-entry was decidedly less graceful than the exit. Aqualad and Superboy both walked through and promptly fell forward onto a floor, Superboy landing on Aqualad. Cassius had Megan float him to the floor beside them when she flew through. Cassius looked around. Nelson was standing with them now, one hand resting on his cane, and all around them was a warped dimension with stairs running in every direction and at every angle, and just in front of them was a massive golden bell.

"Care to explain this one, Flash Brat, or can we skip your bullshit?" Cassius asked.

"Fuck you, Void," Nelson said.

"Oh, so you're Void," Nelson said.

"You've heard of me?" Cassius asked.

"Once or twice," Nelson said. "I actually have a message for you from two people you lost."

Cassius frowned.

"One of them is glad she managed to get you off the island alive, thanked you for giving her some kind of burial, even if it wasn't perfect, and wanted me to tell you she's watching over the girls for you," Nelson said.

"Girls?" Kid Flash asked, then snorted. "And you accused me of only caring about picking up chicks."

"That's not who he's talking about," Megan said.

"And the other?" Cassius asked.

"She said she doesn't blame you, since you weren't given an option, and that all three of them are waiting in heaven, but that you should follow your heart, even if it leads you to someone else," Nelson said. "She sounded like such a sweet woman. I was very confused when they both told me the recipient was Void. I thought they meant it didn't matter. But now I understand."

Cassius stared at the floor. "Thank you, Mr. Nelson."

Nelson nodded, smiling. Just then, a bolt of electricity flashed over them, Nelson and Kid Flash only barely dropping to the ground in time for it to miss. Cassius glared at Abra Kadabra and Klarion, who smirked at him. Abra Kadabra was a dark-skinned man, looking to be Hispanic, with a decently powerful build, A white shirt with the neck a "V" to the bottom of his chest, black pants, and a magic wand, the end of which was currently glowing with light blue electricity.

"Great," Cassius sighed, recognizing the outline of Klarion's horned head as one of the silhouettes of the Light members.

Abra Kadabra continued to shoot bolts of electricity at them, all of them dodging around and around them. As they did, Nelson slammed his cane against the bell twice before it began to glow. He and Kid Flash walked into it and Klarion flew forward, passing into it as well. Cassius turned to Abra Kadabra and raised his hand, beginning to form his goo, only for agony to scream along his nerve endings, starting from where he'd tried to form it and spreading outward. A cry of pain tore out of him and he fell to his knees, clutching at his sides, just in time for a bolt of electricity to explode into him, sending him flying backward into a sideways stairway. However, rather than stay there, as Abra Kadabra was standing on a sideways staircase, he fell, plummeting about twenty feet before crashing down on another normal staircase where Abra Kadabra couldn't target him.

"Thanks," Cassius groaned. "You're a very...good tower." He forced himself up, looking around. His goo was out, but he could still fight without it. "Can you get me Abra Kadabra?"

The stairs to his right began to glow faintly, so he turned, sprinting up them. Then, they came to a section that was inverted ninety degrees and continued to the left. He raised his foot, turning himself and leaning back just in time to continue running along those stairs. Then they turned upside down before the stairs themselves began to twist. After a moment, he reached a platform below the one Abra Kadabra was on just as he caught the others all in cages of electricity. He quietly reached up, gravity flipping as soon as his hands were pressed against the underside, leaving him in a handstand. He silently flipped his feet to the floor, then gripped the edge of it before flipping around, gravity rolling with him until he landed behind Abra Kadabra. The charlatan spun, only for Cassius's right hand to catch his wrist, his left hand drilling a punch into his side. Abra Kadabra shouted in pain, dropping the wand, and Cassius stomped on it, the others' cages vanishing instantly. Abra Kadabra stepped forward, throwing a punch, and Cassius brushed it aside, drilling a punch into his jaw, then a knee into his gut. Then, he clasped his hands above Abra Kadabra and slammed them down into his back, sending his face bouncing off the floor and knocking him out. Megan floated them both over and Aqualad restrained Abra Kadabra as Cassius dropped onto his back, groaning as pain radiated through his body in a constant wave.

"You okay?" Artemis asked.

"I'll be fine," Cassius said. "Eventually. As long as I can avoid going near a fire or pissing off Black Canary."

The others all nodded and Cassius let out a long, slow breath as the pain finally began to fade slowly. After a few more minutes, Kid Flash returned with Nelson's body, telling them he was killed by Klarion, and the Helmet of Fate. They all walked down the stairs, for about three stories before opening a door and finding themselves outside again. Aqualad removed the key from the lock and the tower vanished again. Then, they all got on the Bio-Ship and went home.

* * *

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	19. Chapter 19

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Getting Close

Cassius blocked s short barrage of punches from Cassandra, then threw one of her own, only for her to spin around him, then sweep his legs, knocking him to the ground and holding a knife to his throat.

"Cut it," Cain instructed.

Cassandra hesitated, and instead of her cutting his throat, a gunshot went off and Cassandra yelped in pain, staggering away and holding a hand to her side, where the bullet had punched through her shallowly, enough to hurt, badly, and enough to scar, but not enough to kill her. However, he wasn't done. He holstered his gun and stormed over to her, slamming a fist into her face and knocking her tot he ground before kicking her, slamming her backward into a support pillar for the house's upper level. Cassius stood, but remained silent and made no move to intervene. He knew it would only make it worse. Finally, after several more punches and kicks, Cain finally huffed, stepping away from his barely-conscious daughter.

"Clean her up," Cain snarled as he stormed out of the room. "I'm going on a job."

Cassius waited until Cain had slammed the front door to step forward, kneeling down and helping Cassandra to her feet. She stepped forward instantly, wrapping her arms around him and he sighed, holding her for a moment before pushing her back, using his sleeve to wipe the blood from her nose and the corner of her mouth.

"Come on," he sighed. "Let's go get that gunshot taken care of."

Cassandra nodded and they walked to the bathroom where Cassandra pulled her shirt up out of the way, exposing numerous other scars that Cassius hadn't seen before. He stared at them for a moment before carefully bandaging her soon-to-be newest scar. Once she pulled the shirt down, she turned, hugging him again.

"Is something wrong?" Cassius asked. "You don't usually hug me."

"I'm just glad you're here," Cassandra signed. "You're the only one who's nice to me."

He smiled, nodding, and stood. "Come on. I brought you a surprise this time."

She nodded, following him out of the bathroom and to the library, where he'd left his jacket for after their sparring session ended. Cassandra sat down in the chair she usually took when he taught her to read and write, and he smiled, choosing her a book and handing it to her before picking up his jacket and reaching into an inside pocket. She watched him curiously, and after a moment, he pulled out a chocolate bar. Her eyes widened and he walked over, kneeling in front of her.

"Has Cain ever told you if you have any allergies?" he asked.

"I don't," she signed. "He made sure I didn't have any."

Cassius nodded and pulled the top half of the wrapper off the candy bar and handed it to her. She broke a piece off with her teeth and a smile instantly appeared. She hummed pleasantly as she ate the candy bar and he laughed. Within a couple minutes, the candy bar was gone and he stuck the wrapper back in his jacket.

"Alright, how's your speech coming?" he asked.

She shook her head. He nodded and glanced at her paper.

"Write the words..." he paused to decide on a phrase, then signed it to her. "The zebra played the xylophone while the hippopotamus danced."

Cassandra paused for a moment before beginning to write. Her penmanship was getting better, and her cursive was nearly perfect. Her spelling and grammar still needed work. She forgot which letters were which still, sometimes, and she was still learning the rules of language. Sign language was one thing. It was right up the ally of her ability to understand body language as an actual language. However, according to her, when he spoke, she understood him more because of his body language than his words, which she still didn't actually understand. He wasn't sure _how_ she understood entire conversations about literally anything based off of body language, but that was what she said, and her trouble with speaking and reading aloud supported it. Not that he thought she was lying.

He was pulled from his thoughts as she handed him the paper. He scanned it, nodding to himself.

"This is word is spelled like this," he said, pointing to the first she had misspelled and using sign language to show her the letters, which she wrote down on another paper.

He repeated the process for the rest of her mistakes, and once he was finished, she rewrote the sentence. He smiled and nodded, handing it back, and she reread it to herself several times before moving down and beginning to write something else. Once she finished, she handed it to him again.

"Wil you com wItn me on furst mishun?"

He smiled and nodded, then quickly wrote the sentence correctly below it and handed it back. "Yes, that's the plan. Cain wants me there to make sure you complete it and to make sure you get back without being caught."

She nodded, busy writing out the words she'd gotten wrong so far over and over to memorize the proper spelling. After a little while, he heard Cain's car returning and she stopped, allowing him to gather everything and absorb it into the goo forming his clothes before he put the book away. Then, he stood, pulling on his jacket and giving her a quick hug before stepping away from her just before the front door opened, Cassandra beginning to do pushups, as their usual cover story was that he had her doing strength training. He walked out to meet Cain, who glared at him.

"Well?" Cain asked.

"She's improving," Cassius said. "I have her doing strength training now, as usual."

Cain nodded, walking past Cassius. "Leave."

Cassius nodded and left the building, forming himself wings, and took off toward Deathstroke's home to check on Rose before heading home. Currently, everyone was taking some time off while they waited for the next mission, and Aqualad was in Atlantis. His clone would only have to keep Superboy from figuring out he was gone, so long as no one else showed up.

He dropped the papers Cassandra had been writing on in the water as he flew over it, as well as the candy bar wrapper, then landed at Deathstroke's home a few minutes later. As he opened the door, Deathstroke slammed Rose into the ground, holding his sword to her throat, then glared up at Cassius.

"You're still slow, and you're not predicting my strikes," Deathstroke said. "By the time he'd been trained as long as you, Cassius could face me for several minutes without losing! You're my daughter and you can't even last one minute. You're a disgrace!"

"I'll do better next time, Father," Rose said as she stood, bowing.

Deathstroke snorted derisively. "I'll believe that when I see it. And what are _you_ doing here?"

"I came to report on the mission involving Doctor Fate," Cassius said.

"Good," Deathstroke said. "What do you have?"

"I won't waste your time with the things you already know," Cassius said. "The Justice league retains the key to the Tower of Fate, and Kid Flash has the Helmet of Fate. He's supposed to choose a wielder to inherit it. Aside from that, there's just basic personality information. Kid Flash doesn't believe in magic, Superboy has been steadily growing more controlled, and Sportsmaster's daughter is blending in well. Well enough to make me worry about the safety of my own position there. Her cover is as the Green Arrow's niece, so they trust her. She'll be the better spy for the Shadows before too long."

"Then you'd better hurry up and secure their trust," Deathstroke said. "Spar with Rose. Teach her."

"Why the change of heart?" Cassius asked.

Deathstroke glared at him for a moment before responding. "I will not allow Cain to produce a better weapon for the League of Shadows than I do. Get my worthless daughter strong enough to defeat Cassandra Cain."

And with that, he turned, storming away. Cassius nodded slowly before walking over and readying himself. She moved first, striking faster than he expected, though not as fast as her father could. He deflected several strikes before sweeping her legs out from under her and pinning her.

"I want to go," Rose whispered instantly, just before kicking him in the chest. "Anywhere but here."

He stood, lunging and throwing a feint with his left hand, only for his right to swing around and hit her in the side, hard enough for her to grunt in pain, but not enough for her to actually be hurt. Then, he grabbed her in a choke hold. "I can't yet. Cassandra Cain is going on a hit soon. I'm supposed to go with her. I want to help her as well, so if I'm right and she wants to leave during or after the hit, I'll be here to get you. We'll have to fight both Cain and your father. Leave them to me."

Rose nodded, slamming a foot into his knee and breaking it, then flipped backward over him before slamming a roundhouse kick into his head, sending him crashing to the ground as his leg cracked and ground together loudly as it reset itself and healed. He sighed, nodding approvingly.

"Better," Cassius nodded. "That's the ruthlessness your father's looking for. First rule training under Deathstroke. Winning is winning. Anything goes."

Rose nodded as Cassius stood. "Please hurry."

Cassius nodded. "I'll try."

They sparred several more times before Cassius took his leave, heading back to the Cave.

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	20. Chapter 20

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Amnesia

Cassius groaned, holding a hand to his head and pushing himself up into a seated position, looking around. He was in a desert, it was sunrise, and his head felt like he'd just gotten done going ten rounds with the usual trio of Shadows. That, or Deathstroke had drugged him again in order to test him. He sighed heavily, pushing himself to his feet.

"Alright Deathstroke," Cassius grumbled. "Where the fuck am I this time? What's the test this time, get home alive? Survive an ambush? Wait, did he drug me and send me on a job?" He felt himself,, concentrating to search inside of himself for a target profile folder, but there was nothing. "Nope. No folder. Thanks to whatever drug he gave me, I can't even remember what I was doing last." He looked around again. "Dammit, Deathstroke. What the fuck?"

He sighed, picking a direction and starting to walk, the sun slowly inching it way up from the horizon. The heat began to climb rapidly and he grit his teeth, wiping his forehead as he began to sweat.

"Seriously Deathstroke," Cassius grumbled. "Of all the fucking places to drug me and drop me off, you just _happened_ to pick the desert, huh? Couldn't go with some tropical deserted island? Would it have killed you to at least leave me some FUCKING WATER! ? !"

He kicked a rock in the sand with goo encasing his leg, sending it streaking away. He raised a hand to his ear, but he had no communicator. He sighed. Of course he had no way of contacting the Shadows for an extract. What kind of test would that be? He sighed, stopping in the shade of a rock spire to rest after hours of walking and try and think. What had his last mission been? The banker? No. Not the politician. He didn't think it was joke mission to steal twelve kilos of cocaine just to prove to a drunken Deathstroke that he could. He grimaced at the memory of his hangover the next day. He was definitely not drinking with Deathstroke again. It was _so_ weird to see him be anything other than a cold, ruthless asshole. It also made the plan to kill him along with Cain and Lady Shiva a touch less satisfying. Though only a little. He remembered that he was supposed to train Cassandra from time to time. How had that been going? What was the last thing he taught her?

A whistling disturbed his thoughts and he opened his eye, then instantly used his goo to all but catapult himself to the side, narrowly avoiding the explosion of a tank round. He flipped, landing on his feet and narrowed his eyes at the three approaching tanks, fifty-odd troops, and one Humvee with a mounted fifty caliber heavy machinegun. Not nearly enough. Of course, the fact that they knew where he was was a bit disconcerting. He was usually better at going undetected than that. He huffed, formed his entire body into goo and exploded forward as the guns all began to fire. He leapt into the air, the concussion of another shot from one of the tanks' main guns going off hurling him into the air.

"Thanks asshole!" Cassius grinned. "Game, set, match!"

He swung his hands downward, sending out a massive cloud of goo spikes. The soldiers shouted and screamed in fear and dismay as the spikes rained down around them, stabbing through the tanks effortlessly and slaughtering troops. He left one alive and pulled the goo spikes around and in the tanks back to himself less than a second after they hit, sparing his goo from the tanks exploding a moment later, hurling his one survivor. Then, he crashed down in front of them and picked them up by the throat, forming his previously faceless goo face into a pair of slit, inward angled eyes and a mouth full of jagged, pointed teeth, getting exactly the terrified reaction he's hoped for.

"You're going to answer my questions," he snarled. "If you do, I'll let you go."

The man begged for his life in Bialyan, so Cassius repeated his offer in the same language.

"Yes!" the man said, nodding vigorously. "Yes, of course! Anything!"

"Where are we?" Cassius asked.

"South East Bialya!" the man said.

"What's the date?" Cassius asked.

"September fourth, two thousand ten!" the man said.

"Don't lie to me!" Cassius snapped. "It's still March!"

The man shouted in fear, recoiling as much as he could. "No! No! It's September! I swear!"

Cassius narrowed his eyes before humming thoughtfully. "September, huh? I believe you. Alright. Last question. How did you all know how to find me? And why did you attack me?"

"We were ordered to find the seven that invaded and kill them!" he said.

"Seven?" Cassius asked. "There were seven of us? And we were compromised?"

"Yes!" the man said.

"Who were they?" Cassius asked.

"I don't know! I swear!"

Cassius sighed. "I believe you." He released the man. "Run."

The man turned to run, but after five steps, Cassius put a goo spike through his head before retracting it, transforming it back into his left arm as he shifted himself back to normal in a sand-colored tee-shirt and pants, and a sand-colored shemagh wrapped around his head. He walked along the vehicles' tire tracks for a couple hours, but after a bit, they had disappeared as the sand was blown around. He sighed, once again picking a direction and beginning to walk. After a few more hours, and several more thinking and resting breaks, all of which did nothing, he heard an explosion off to one side and turned, jogging that way. After a few minutes, he reached the top of a large sand dune and stopped, watching as a shirtless, apparently indestructible, boy of roughly sixteen ripped apart a pair of tanks with his bare hands, his skin deflecting machine gun bullets easily.

"Kryptonian," Cassius mused. "I think I'll stay away from you. I have a strict no unnecessary dismemberment policy. Plus, you're all savage rage and instinct right now, by the look of you." he paused, humming thoughtfully. "I wonder. Do you have any memories at all?"

He shook his head, looking around. The Kryptonian wasn't his problem. At least, not right now. First, he had to find a way to remember the last six months of time he'd lost. Deathstroke would have his head if he was actually on a job and fucked up. Not to mention the _rest_ of the Shadows. He walked until he found a small cave made by several rock formations leaning against one another and walked inside, sitting in the back of the cave and closed his eyes. The sun was setting. He'd walked all day and found nothing. He'd remembered nothing. He had no phone, no communicators, and no gear. If he was on a job, he'd at minimum have a way to call for extract, and he'd have an emergency knife in case someone found a way to disable his powers. He had nothing. So, time for emergency measures. He'd have to resort to trying to meditate. Not his favorite thing to do, and not usually very helpful, but if he could manage to remember something, it'd be worth it.

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, allowing his mind to wander. He remembered the politician first. Easy job. Not his most recent. He remembered that when he woke up. He remembered one of his numerous sparring sessions with Deathstroke. This one was more memorable as Deathstroke had actually shot him in the pelvic hurdle that time, which was an experience he was _not_ eager to repeat. Still not a missing memory, though. He tried to focus a little harder, working through the timeline of his memories, but it just abruptly faded as he reached March. He frowned, continuing to try and meditate, to force himself to remember _anything_, for hours. All he got were two things. First was Cassandra. He remembered her hugging him, which she never did, signing that she was happy he was there, which was not something she would normally say, and then smiling widely, her light green eyes shining with appreciation and joy as she ate a chocolate bar, all three of which were things that would never happen. Cain would beat her until she couldn't move for smiling, or for eating a candy bar, and Cassandra was never happy, so her eyes shouldn't have been lit up like that. The second thing to return to him was another girl, one he didn't recognize. She was about Cassandra's age, but had long, snow-white hair to contrast Cassandra's short black hair, fair pale skin, bright blue eyes, and a pleading look on her freshly-bruised face as she asked him to get her away from the Shadows. her black bodysuit with orange shoulders, vambraces, and grieves betrayed her as having a connection to Deathstroke, though he had no idea who she was. However, he was sure that if Deathstroke had a new apprentice, he would absolutely love to know she was trying to convince Cassius to leave the Shadows. He found himself wondering who would kill her, and how, but he decided it would probably end up being Deathstroke shooting her.

Just then, Robin landed in front of the cave. Cassius's eyes widened as Robing grinned.

"I found him!" Robin called out.

Cassius launched himself forward instantly, drilling a punch into Robin's jaw and hurling him, then bolted, not bothering to finish the boy wonder off. If he was calling out to someone, that meant Batman, which likely also mean Superman. He was _not_ repeating that fight. He formed goo around his legs, sprinting across the desert rapidly, only to suddenly rise into the air. He swore. Martian Manhunter.

"It's alright!" a feminine voice said as he turned around, seeing a female Martian with a black bodysuit bearing a red "X" across the torso, a blue cape, and long red hair. "We're not-"

He swung an arm, firing a shot barrage of goo spikes at the Martian. Either Martian Manhunter was a crossdresser suddenly, or she was someone else. Either way, he didn't care. He was leaving before Superman showed up. The Martian gasped harshly, barely managing to stop the goo spikes and Cassius landed on his feet, taking off again, leaving the goo spikes behind. He'd grow the goo back, like he usually did if he had to ditch projectiles. Besides, that few spikes was nothing. However, before he could get far, a black streak shot around in front of him, slamming a punch into his jaw and flipping him backward before Kid Flash skidded to a stop.

"Man you can run fast when you want to," Kid Flash grinned.

Cassius growled in annoyance, forming go claws, only to spin, slashing a bolo that was fired from a green arrow, seeing a blonde teen dressed like a mildly slutty, moderately attractive Green Arrow gender swap cosplay and holding a compound bow. He grit his teeth. Fine. They wanted a fight, they got one. He formed his claws into blades.

"Void, stop!" Robin shouted, skidding down a sand done. "We don't want to fight you! We're trying to help!"

"Help how!?" Cassius demanded.

"We're a team!" Robin said.

Cassius released a bark of laughter. "Now that's funny! As if I'd ever be on a team with the Boy Wonder, the shitty Flash rip-off, and the slutty Green Arrow and Martian Manhunter gender swaps! I'm just fine being a Shadow, thanks. You all can keep your fucking Justice League bullshit!"

"The League of Shadows betrayed you!" Kid Flash said. "They tried to have you cloned and killed!"

"Prove it," Cassius said.

"I will," the Martian said from behind him.

He spun, moving to stab her while preparing to defend himself against mental attacks. Before he could, however, he was suddenly standing on a purple platform, surrounded by a shattered dome, each fragment of glass playing a separate video clip, or, at least, part of it. He looked around, then glared at the Martian.

"What'd you do?" he asked.

"I pulled you into your own mind," she said. "And I'm using telekinesis to hold your body still for the moment."

"You won't be able to read my mind or brainwash me," Cassius said.

"I know," the Martian said. "You've been trained to resist."

"You know your shit," he smirked. "You trying to start a war with the Shadows?"

"No," she said, shaking her head. "I'm trying to save my friend."

He narrowed his eyes. "We are _not_ friends! I don't _have_ friends!"

"You do," she said. "You also had a sister, a wife, and two children before."

Cassius's eyes widened. "Wha..."

"Do you remember?" she asked. "Your sister was the girl who found you when you first began to have memories again. It was all pain, until she woke you. You saved her from being raped, but then she died as you were leaving the island together. Your wife and children were the family you killed during your first job. The Shadows sent you after them so that they couldn't tell you who you were later."

Cassius stared at the floor for a moment before swallowing hard and glared at her, his mind conflicted. He looked around, seeing her face in a couple of the broken shards of the dome. "Are these your memories?"

"No," she said. "They're yours."

He was silent for a moment before gritting his teeth. "How are you planning to help me?"

"I'm going to piece your mind and your memories back together," she said. "I'll see everything, but I should be able to help you. And seeing everything was exactly why I left the others outside. I'm the only one whose seen your memories, and I know you don't want the others seeing them."

He was silent for a long few moments as he considered before nodding stiffly. "Okay. Do it."

She nodded and her eyes lit up white before a glowing blue arm reached up from her head, bending down and gripping his own head before light shone behind his eyes. Then, it was all there. The truth of his past, the Shadows' betrayal, his decision to try and save and protect Cassandra and Rose. He remembered hating the other members of the team, being annoyed by them constantly, and then slowly growing to feel out of place around them because of their lack of trust more than his desire to not be there. He remembered fooling the Shadows into thinking he was loyal so that he could keep an eye on Cassandra and Rose, he remembered bringing flowers to his family's graves, and he remembered offering Rose the chance for a better life. Then, he remembered Cassandra's smile, even more clearly than he had on his own, and the desperation in Rose's eyes as she asked him to save her. Then, he was back. he fell to his knees, all of his goo retracting into his body as tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Cassandra," he breathed. "Rose. I...Thank you, Megan."

"You're welcome," Megan said, kneeling. "Are you alright? If you need help with...you know...I can."

"No," Cassius said. "I need to do it myself. It's too dangerous for you all to get involved in that. At least, not yet."

Megan nodded.

"Did you find out whatever was in that tent?" he asked, remembering that they had been investigating some form of energy spike and she had gone to investigate a tent controlled by the Bialyans.

"I think that was where I lost my memory," she said. "I can't remember going in."

He nodded, standing. "Where's Aqualad? Superboy we'll need to retrain. I can handle that. Aqualad's probably dying of dehydration right now. We need to find him."

"I've got his location," Robin said. "You were closer, and also a bigger threat than Superboy if not dealt with, so we came to get you."

Cassius nodded, wiping his eyes as more tears fell.

"Whoa, are you...crying?" Kid Flash asked.

"If you knew what I just remembered that I forgot...forget it," Cassius sighed. "Let's go save our leader."

The others all nodded and they turned, heading toward Aqualad's signal. After about thirty minutes, they finally reached the coordinates. As they found him, he was babbling in Atlantean.

"I can't restore his memories in this condition," Megan said.

"He needs immediate rehydration," Kid Flash said. "Call the Bio-Ship."

"It's out of range," Megan said. "But you could get him there fast."

"He's too heavy," Kid Flash said. "And I'm too low on fuel. Right now, I couldn't even carry her." He jabbed a thumb at Artemis, who smacked him.

"We could try pissing on him," Cassius suggested.

"No!" Robin snapped.

"Ew!" Artemis said.

"Why don't _you_ run him to the ship?" Kid Flash asked.

"Because I'm the only one left who can help Megan with Superboy," Cassius said.

"We have to find him soon," Megan said. "Superboy didn't _exist_ six months ago. He has no memories. Just animal instinct. I'm the only one that can help him."

"Superboy's indestructible," Kid Flash said. "Just ask those tanks. Aqualad is _dying_!"

Just then, Megan gasped, holding her hands to her head. "No! Superboy's in pain! I have to help him!"

"Wait!" Robin shouted as she flew away. "We still don't know what erased our memories! It could happen again!"

Cassius sighed, looking to Aqualad before groaning and forming a goo clone. "This is going to be really bad, I just know it."

"I'll take him to the bio ship," the clone said, picking Aqualad up on his back and sticking him there with goo, forming goo over his legs as well. "Which way?"

"Straight that way," Robin said, pointing.

The clone nodded, taking off at a sprint.

"How long have you been able to form clones?" Robin asked.

"A long time," Cassius said. "I didn't want to showcase that skill to anyone for obvious trust issue reasons. Come on. We need to go after Megan."

The others nodded and they all turned, running in the direction she'd flown. After nearly an hour of travel, they finally found the same tent she'd entered before they lost their memory just in time to see a massive yellow tornado of sand and psychic energy rip the tent apart before exploding and scattering everything, leaving Superboy kneeling in the center and holding Megan, who was currently unconscious.

"Good work team," Cassius said.

"We _are_ pretty good aren't we?" Kid Flash asked.

Just then, a metal sphere rolled over to Superboy and Megan, interrupting what was about to be a kiss, though Kid Flash was too busy asking Artemis why her father would want her to kill him to notice what they'd been about to do.

"Can I keep it?" Superboy asked, Megan smiling.

"I got confused by a movie I watched the other night where a ninja girl's ninja dad wants her to kill her ninja boyfriend," was Artemis's shaky, at best, explanation.

"So, I'm your ninja boyfriend, huh?" Kid Flash smirked.

"Hey!" Artemis snapped. "Amnesia, remember? I couldn't remember how completely insufferable and annoying you are!"

"Get a room, you two," Cassius said.

"Shut up!" both of them snapped, Robin laughing instantly.

After a couple minutes, they returned and began the excruciatingly long trip back to the Bio-Ship, only to find Cassius's clone using his goo to restrain Aqualad.

"He didn't listen when I told him I'm a friend," the clone said.

"Yeah, I kind of figured," Cassius said, reabsorbing the clone but leaving the goo.

"Hello Megan!" Megan said, thumping her forehead. "Aqualad's memories! I knew I forgot something!"

"Robin, Kid Flash, why are you working with Void!?" Aqualad demanded. "He is a member of the League of Shadows!"

"Not anymore," Kid Flash said.

"Kaldur, you've lost six months of your memories," Robin said. "Miss Martian can restore them for you."

Aqualad stared at her for a moment before nodding. Megan reached out, resting her hand on his head for a moment as her eyes shone white, then took it back. Aqualad looked around before sighing and nodding. Cassius retracted his goo and Aqualad put his Water Bearers away.

"I am sorry for what I did," Aqualad said.

"What, the broken nose?" Cassius asked.

"And the knee, and both elbows," Aqualad said.

Cassius waved his hand dismissively. "I've had worse. Ever been shot in the pelvic hurdle?"

"No," Aqualad said.

"I don't recommend it," Cassius said. "Anyway, now that the team's got their memories back, lets go home."

Everyone nodded and they headed to the cockpit, Aqualad keeping the IV of water in his arm. Then, a moment later, they finally left the desert behind.

* * *

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	21. Chapter 21

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Forced Hand

Cassius spun around Cassandra's punch and passing her on her left, but she instantly spun away from him, swinging a right windmill kick at him. A goo arm burst from his chest, catching her foot and swinging her into the air, only for her to flip, slamming a kick into his goo hand's thumb to free herself, then flipped to the ground. As she landed, she charged, rolling under his punch and standing grabbing him by the arm and bending him forward, holding a knife to his throat, only to stop as a third arm bearing goo claws pressed to her abdomen, hovering there and ending the fight in a tie.

"Well done," Cassius said. "You were close that time. You have a hard time reading my goo's movements don't you?"

"There's no body language to read," Cassandra signed.

"I suppose," Cassius nodded.

"There you are," Cain said, looking to Cassandra. "Go change."

She nodded and ran off instantly.

"You're not there to kill the target," Cain said. "You're there to make sure she completes the mission, then bring her back."

"Understood," Cassius nodded. "However, I need you to understand that I _will not_ be allowing myself to be compromised during this, so I'm going to borrow your pistols and impersonate you. I can't jeopardize my position with the Justice League's team."

"Fine," Cain said, handing him the pistols, only for Cassius to press one to his forehead instantly.

"Oh how I wish these didn't have filed down firing pins," Cassius said, pulling the trigger and getting nothing but a disappointing click. "Some day."

"We'll see," Cain said. "I trust you can make them work with your goo."

"If I need to, yes," Cassius said, transforming into a replica of Cain. "I'll have her back by tomorrow."

Cain nodded and Cassius holstered the pistols. He accepted the folder with the job's information and walked over to the door to wait. After a moment, Cassandra walked over dressed in a black gi, pants, Chinese martial arts shoes, and a cloth mask to cover her nose and mouth, currently pulled down around her neck. The thing that caught him off guard, however, was Cassandra actually smiling up at him the moment she saw him, both letting him know that she knew who he was instantly, and also making him wish they were going somewhere else. Anywhere else. After a few minutes, they got onto the League of Shadows' helicopter and the pilot took off.

"Are you ready?" Cassius signed.

Cassandra nodded, and he handed her the folder. She read through it quickly before nodding. The target was a fat white bookkeeper named Faizul who had been skimming from an organization that the Light owned. The organization's security were all League of Shadows grunts, meaning that this was as much a final test for Cassandra as it was a hit. Cassius scanned through the folder again, glancing at Cassandra.

"Tell me about the target," he signed.

"He's the fat man in the picture," she signed back. "He stole money from the League of Shadows, and he has Shadows grunts protecting him that have all been bought off and are traitors, but they'll be dealt with at a later time."

He nodded and burned the folder, taking care to stay away from the flames. Then, they waited. After several hours, they were flying high above the building, and Cassandra pulled her mask up before they both dropped out, Cassius holding Cassandra and using his goo to land silently on the building. The helicopter left as soon as they landed, and once it had, Cassius followed Cassandra into the building. They stuck to the shadows, both slipping past dozens of sets of guard before finally taking an air shaft into the man's office. Cassandra took a breath to ready herself, then dropped in and shot forward, drawing a knife and knife and slashing his throat deep enough that when he tried to scream, blood flooded into his windpipe, letting nothing but a soft, wet gurgling, choking sound out. Cassius dropped behind Cassandra as she stared at the man, her eyes wide with surprise. As the man stared at her in terror and clutched at his throat, fear blossomed to fill Cassandra's eyes. Then, as the lights faded from Faizul's eyes, Cassandra staggered backward, dropping her knife and covering her mouth as she let out a sob. However, at the same moment, an alarm began to scream. Cassandra didn't react, so Cassius turned her to him, hands on her shoulders.

"Cassandra!" he snapped, pulling her back to the present. "We need to leave!"

"No!" Cassandra signed, shaking her head as tears flooded down her face. "Don't take me back! Please! I can't! I can't do this again!"

"I-"

A bullet punched into his side and he snarled in rage, turning to get between her and the Shadows running toward them, blocking several more bullets with goo covering his back before a second upper body formed from his back and swung its arms, sending spears of goo spraying out into the shadows, slaughtering everyone in view.

"I'm not taking you back to Cain!" Cassius said urgently as he retracted the second upper body. "But we need to leave! I'm taking you back to the Justice League team I'm on. You can join them if you want, or you can live a normal life. Either way, you won't have to kill ever again."

Cassandra nodded just as more shadows stepped into view. Cassius swung a hand, slaughtering them too, but as he held his hand out to retrieve his goo, Cain suddenly dropped from the vent they'd used, slashing with a machete and taking his arm off at the elbow. He shouted in pain, staggering away and pushing Cassandra behind him.

"I _knew_ you couldn't be trusted!" Cain snarled. "And you, you little failure. We'll get to your punishment for not being able to complete your mission after I've dealt with him."

"You won't touch her," Cassius snarled, pulling his severed arm and goo spikes back to him as he drew Cain's pistols, Cain having a backup pair strapped to his sides. "You'll never hurt her again!"

Cain snarled angrily and lunged forward, only for Cassius to sweep the blade upward with one pistol, spreading goo into both to replace the section of firing pin that was filed down. He moved to shoot Cain, but Cain stepped out of the way, the three bullets killing the last three Shadows grunts in the building instead. Then, Cassius extended a third arm, punching Cain and sending him staggering away before turning to shoot him, only for Cain's machete to slash through his forearms, making him drop both guns before he flipped backward over several buildings, landing on the ceiling as he reconnected his arms and formed goo over his body to help with the bullets, then formed a goo broadsword. He leapt off the roof, slashing downward at Cain and Cain deflected it, then slashed Cassius across the back and left side. Cassius spun, slashing at Cain, only for Cain to deflect it over himself and hurl a small sphere. Cassius dove out of the way and it exploded into an inferno against one wall. The heat slammed into Cassius instantly, and Cassius grunted. Cain slashed the goo sword out of his hand and sent it into the fire, only for it to turn to ash before it hit the wall. Then, Cain slashed Cassius across the chest, knocking him away from the flames. Cassius groaned, ducking under the machete and ignored his agony, stepping forward and drilling a fist into Cain's jaw. Cain was holding nothing back this time, so he couldn't either. It was either him or Cain. Only one could survive.

Cain slashed at him from the side and Cassius caught his hand, slamming a fist into his gut and moved to break his arm, only for Cain to kick him between the legs and stab him in the side. Cassius shouted in pain, then forced his goo to respond, once again ignoring the agony doing so caused, and slammed a backhanded fist into Cain, launching him backward into the room all the dead Shadows grunts had been. Fortunately, Cassius had broken all of their guns.

He ripped the machete out of his side and hurled it through the window to his left, shattering the window and getting rid of the blade. A moment later, a knife stabbed into his shoulder, Cain only just behind it. Cassius shouted in pain, staggering toward the flames, only to stop himself and dive out of the way of Cain's punch. He twisted, shoving Cain into the flames and Cain shrieked in agony, staggering out of them before slamming into a 10 gallon water jug, punching it and breaking it open, the water cascading over him and putting out the flames that had clung to him. Cain stood as Cassius staggered to his feet, only for Cain to hold up a detonator, pressing the switch. The ceiling above Cassius and Cassandra exploded and Cassius grabbed Cassandra, hurling her out of the way, then moved to jump after her, only for a broken piece of water pipe to impale him through the gut from behind, stabbing into the floor and stopping, keeping him suspended a couple feet up. Because it was the pipe it was, however, it also caused the water sprinklers currently failing to keep the fire from spreading to shut off. Cassandra screamed in fear and dismay as she saw Cassius, only for Cain to punch her for making noise.

"I see he's been teaching you more than fighting," Cain snarled. "Fine. I'll beat silence into you again. But first, I'll kill him."

He turned, walking toward Cassius, gripping the knife and ripping it out of his shoulder.

"Stop!" Cassandra shrieked suddenly, Cain freezing.

He turned to her, livid, only to stop as he saw her holding a pistol aimed at him, tears flooding down her face and the pistol trembling. "You little bitch. Put that down!"

"Stop!" Cassandra said again, more forcefully this time, though she was still hysterical.

Cain narrowed his eyes. "You won't shoot me."

He turned, moving to slit Cassius's throat, only for a gunshot to ring out. Then another, and another. He dropped the knife, eyes wide with shot as shot after shot slammed into his back. He staggered past Cassius as Cassandra's gun finally clicked, Cassandra dropping it and falling to her knees, sobbing. Cain turned toward Cassandra, staring for a moment before tipping backward and falling into the flames. Within seconds he was shrieking in pain, Cassandra covering her ears against the sound. Cassius groaned, feeling himself starting to burn as Cain's windpipe was cauterized closed, cutting off his screams.

"C...Cassan...dra," Cassius wheazed.

"Cassius!" Cassandra sobbed, running over and trying to pull the pipe out of the ground.

"Cass...stop," Cassius said. "I need...you to pull me...off the pipe...then...get us out of here. I can heal...after we're...away from the fire."

Cassandra nodded and stood, gripping him before yanking upward. A shriek of agony ripped out of Cassius's throat as he came free of the pipe. Then, Cassandra leapt out the window, pulling out a grappling gun and using it to swing to the roof of a different building several buildings away. As they landed, she lost her grip on Cassius and he bounced and rolled along before rolling to a stop, gasping and panting for breath, barely able to do it from his numerous wounds that were barely healing. Cassandra knelt beside him and looked at his wounds worriedly, but he reached up, gently brushing away her tears.

"You...saved me," he smiled. "Thank...you."

Cassandra nodded, forcing a smile, only to begin crying again. He reached up, pulling her head to his chest so he could hold her, since he couldn't stand, and they remained there for a long while as she sobbed. Finally, after nearly an hour, his wounds had healed and his goo was responding enough for them to leave.

"Come on, Cassandra," Cassius said, standing and forming himself a pair of wings. "We need to go. We're going to take Rose Wilson with us."

Cassandra nodded and Cassius picked her up, sticking her to himself with goo, Cassandra holding him tightly anyway, and took off. He grit his teeth, holding in a groan as every cell in his body burned, along with every bit of goo. he was going to need to rest for another weak again. But he could worry about that after he knew Cassandra and Rose were safe.

He finally landed outside Deathstroke's home and sighed, retracting his wings and forming goo over his body. "Stay behind me, no matter what."

Cassandra nodded and Cassius kicked the door in, being greeted instantly by a dozen bullets. Cassius grunted in pain and launched himself at Deathstroke, slamming a fist into his face, only for him to flip, landing in the training room beside a weapons' stand where he picked up his personal broadsword and drew it. Cassius formed himself a goo sword instantly and lunged forward, deflecting several slashes before Deathstroke's ridiculously shiny blade caught the light, blinding him before he drove it through Cassius's heart, then turned, slashing his way out through Cassius's right side, taking his right arm off as well. Cassius shouted in pain, staggering backward and falling. Deathstroke laughed.

"Looks like Cain managed to deal some damage after all before you took him out!" Deathstroke smirked. "Well, at least you can rest easy knowing you killed _one_ of the people you wanted dead!"

He moved to finish Cassius off as Cassius retrieved his arm and goo sword. Then, Rose slashed at him with one of her two katanas He blocked it and she shoved his sword out to the side, slashing at him, only for him to block it with the top of his pistol. Then, Cassandra leapt over Damian, slamming a kick into the side of Deathstroke's head, hurling him away. He dropped his gun as he staggered and Cassius shot past both of them, slashing at Deathstroke rapidly with three separate goo swords, held in his three sets of arms, two sets of which were entirely goo. He used everything Deathstroke, Cain, and Lady Shiva had beaten, shot, slashed, and stabbed into him, forcing Deathstroke back rapidly. Then, he spun, allowing Cassius to stagger past him before slashing across the back, splitting his spine and briefly paralyzing him.

Cassius began to heal instantly, seeing a weapons rack in front of him with a pair of wakizashi on the bottom of it and a belt of explosives just above it. He pushed himself up, grabbing the wakizashi and smirking at the familiar weight. They were the first real weapons he'd used with Deathstroke, and he had gotten good with them. Meanwhile, he still couldn't make anything but a broadsword with his goo. He turned to Deathstroke just as Cassandra managed to duck under his sword and jumped, slamming an uppercut into the underside of his chin, sending him staggering backward at Rose, who jumped and spun, kicking at him from his right. His left hand snapped up, catching her foot before swinging her around at Cassandra. Cassandra leapt over Rose, allowing him to hurl her aside, only for him to move to stab Cassandra. Her eyes went wide with fear, only for Cassius to slash the sword upward, making it miss her. Deathstroke instantly leapt away from the other wakizashi, narrowly avoiding the blade, then turned back to him and charged instantly.

Cassius moved to meet his charge and ducked under his sword, slashing upward at him. Deathstroke spun around it and slashed at Cassius, who ducked under it, moving to slash Deathstroke. However, before he could, Deathstroke released the sword, allowing it to spin away before jumping over Cassius's blade. Cassius's eyes rose to Deathstroke just as he drove his short metal staff, which had a retractable tanto blade inside one end, down into his back, the blade stabbing Cassius through the heart. He ripped it out a moment later as Rose slashed at him with his own broadsword. However, he stepped forward, sweeping her legs, then spun, slashing at Cassandra with the blade, forcing her to leap away, the blade slashing across her abdomen shallowly. A pair of goo arms exploded up into Deathstroke's face, hurling him backward, just as Rose charged, slashing at him rapidly, Deathstroke fending her off with his staff. Cassius sent out a strand of goo to the weapon rack, grabbing the explosives and a pair of longswords with gold guards forming a "Y" with the grips. As he stood, Deathstroke used the back end of his staff to knock both of Rose's blades aside then slashed with the other. She stepped to the side to avoid it, but Deathstroke transitioned into a stab perfectly. Cassius's goo caught the staff a split second too late and Rose screamed in agony as the blade drove itself into her left eye. Cassius roared in rage, slashing at Deathstroke and he leapt away, then shouted in pain as Cassius's goo sent his staff stabbing into his abdomen, tacking the explosives to him.

He swore harshly ripping the blade out and hurling it and the explosives away as Cassius sprinted out of the building, a set of goo arms holding both of the girls to his chest. Then, as the bombs exploded and blasted a massive hole in several floors, Cassius got outside, forming a set of wings and taking off. As he flew, he looked back, vision telescoping to see Deathstroke stagger out of the ruined house, glaring up at him, holding a hand to his gut. Cassius allowed his vision to return to normal and pushed himself to fly faster, using goo to stem Rose's bleeding, though her sobs turned to screams of pain for a moment as his goo applied pressure to her ruined eye.

"I know," Cassius said. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not...your fault," Rose said through gritted teeth, struggling to calm herself.

Cassandra gave Rose her hand to squeeze and Rose clenched it instantly, slowly managing to calm down. Finally, Cassius reached Happy Harbor, flying low and exploding through the wall of the hospital, landing inside the room they kept the medication. Several doctors ran in, only to stop.

"I need help!" Cassius snapped. "She's been stabbed in the eye!"

The doctors hesitated, so Cassius sent out a goo arm, grabbing a nurse and pulling her over to them.

"How do you treat a stab wound to the eye!?" Cassius snarled.

"Uh...s-stitch it closed and wait for it to heal!" she said. "And use a lot of pain killers!"

He released her, shoving her out of the way, then turned to Rose. "This is going to hurt."

"Go ahead," Rose said, Cassandra once again giving her a hand to squeeze.

Then, two tiny strands of Cassius's goo reached up and drove itself into her eyelid. Rose shrieked in pain instantly, but within a few seconds, he was done and had stitched her bisected eyeball back together, then did the same with her eyelid. Once he was done, he retracted the excess goo and looked around, seeing everyone had fled. He turned, searching through the medicine storage before finding several strong types of pain killers, and antibiotics. He grabbed several of each and filled a syringe with one dose of morphine, turning and injecting it into Rose's arm. Relief flooded her face instantly and she sagged against him. He picked her up just as Megan suddenly flew up into the hole, Kid Flash and Robin appearing at the door to the room, and Cassius's clone used its goo to pull itself into the hole, Artemis following a moment later with her grappling crossbow.

"What...What the hell!?" Robin asked. "Cassius!?"

Cassius reabsorbed his clone then pressed a bandage to Rose's eye, beginning to wrap more bandages around her head to hold it in place.

"Robin, Kid Flash, Artemis, allow me to introduce you both to Cassandra Cain and Rose Wilson," Cassius said. "Cassandra is the daughter of David Cain, now dead, and Lady Shiva. Rose is the daughter of Slade Wilson, better known as Deathstroke. For a little more than a year, I've been training Cassandra to fight and dropping by to check on Rose when I had time. That includes my time with the team. I pretended to act as the League of Shadows' mole in order to protect the two of them until I could get them away. However, Cain forced my hand and I had to take both now. Cain is dead. Deathstroke isn't. If you want specifics, I'll tell you after I talk to the Justice League, particularly Batman."

He stood, lifting both girls with two sets of goo arms before dropping out and forming wings, flying them both to the Cave. Within minutes, the rest had arrived as well, and Cassius walked to the briefing room, finding Red Tornado, who turned to him instantly.

"Who are those two?" Red Tornado asked.

"Get Batman here right now," Cassius said. "He and I need to have a chat concerning these two and the League of Shadows."

* * *

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	22. Chapter 22

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Placement

Batman glared at Cassius as he finished his story, the entirety of the Justice League and the team present. None were pleased. Aqualad and Megan weren't surprised, and Cassius would guess that Megan was probably happy he'd gotten them out alive, albeit not in one piece, in Rose's case, but they were both keeping their faces neutral.

"Let me see if I've got all of this right," the Flash finally said. "You've been giving the League of Shadows reports on every mission you all go on, you've been lying to the team, and you've repeatedly snuck off and left a fake in your place in order to train two, at the time, members of the League of Shadows. Now, you killed one of the League of Shadows' top assassins, blew up another's house, and stole both of their daughters away from the Shadows, and you expect us to just accept them? You expect us to just forgive you?"

"Not at all," Cassius said. "Do whatever you need to me. Send me back to the Shadows for punishment if you need to. But these two are both children. Neither of them was ever given a choice. _These_ are the children Martian Manhunter mentioned before you allowed me to join the team. I told you when I joined that I would do whatever it took to protect them, and due to recent events, that meant bringing them here, where they can be protected from the Shadows. if you need to punish me, that's fine. But give them a chance."

The others all looked around at one another in silence. Finally, Batman spoke.

"We will not harbor any members of the League of Shadows, former or otherwise," Batman said.

"Batman, they're children," Wonder Woman said.

"They're trained assassins," Batman said. "They're _dangerous_."

"So isn't Superman!" Hal Jordan argued.

"We are not having this discussion here," Batman said. "The three of you are leaving. Now."

Cassius snorted, shaking his head.

"Something funny?" Batman asked.

"Yeah," Cassius said. "You call yourself a hero? You? Arrogant, self-glorifying, hypocritical asshole that you are? A hero? That's one of the best jokes I've heard in a long time. So I suppose it's heroic in your eyes to throw a pair of nine-year-old girls out on the street and let the League of Shadows kill them? I suppose in your eyes it's heroic to stand by and do nothing while they're both brutally beaten and tortured their entire childhoods? Just leave them to suffer and grow up to be assassins? I suppose it was _wrong_ of me to rescue them from that fate, right? Yeah, you're not a hero, Batman. You're just playing mob boss, with your powerful gang," he gestured around at the rest of the League, "enforcing _your opinion_ of what's right and wrong. Screw what anyone else's moral compass says!

"A former assassin decides to try and make things right and wants to save two children from being tortured and turned into the same kind of monster as him, so in exchange, you fill the _entirety_ of the Cave with hundreds of cameras and listening devices in order to monitor him at all times, to include a half-mile radius outside! Then the one time I'm too badly injured to go on a mission and I go to sleep while the rest of the team goes on it, you station Red Tornado _in my room_ to watch me, just to make sure I don't do anything you don't like! You talk about how you trust this team, and how we're always supposed to trust that everything the Justice League does is correct, and you all never make mistakes, and yet when I'm trying to correct my own mistakes, you won't even trust me enough to let me sleep off a near-death experience without a fucking babysitter waiting to kill me if I decide to stretch my legs!? And yet _you're_ a fucking hero!? Are you fucking kidding me!?"

"You've been spying on us?" Robin asked. "This whole time?"

"Specifically, they've been spying on _me_, but I doubt they turned the cameras off if I wasn't in the room," Cassius said.

"After all this time, you still do not trust us," Aqualad said.

"It's not you we don't trust," Flash said. "It's Cassius."

"Cassius has given more for this team than any of us," Aqualad said.

"He gave up his entire life to join this team!" Megan said.

"Not his entire life, it seems," Batman said.

"Oh, and what, you actually _do_ think it was wrong for him to rescue these kids from the League of Shadows?" Kid Flash asked. "What, are we only supposed to be allowed to rescue the people that the Justice League deems worthy?"

"I thought heroes were supposed to help _everyone_ they could, not just everything they _approved of_!" Superboy said.

"This is not the Justice League I wished to be a part of," Aqualad said. "I am out."

"Speedy was right about all of you," Robin said. "I'm done."

"Right behind you," Kid Flash said.

All of the members of the Team except for Artemis turned to leave, Cassandra and Rose walking alongside Cassius.

"You coming, Artemis?" Kid Flash asked, looking back at her.

She hesitated, looking between him and the League before nodding, following. However, as they reached the Zeta Tube, it did nothing.

"What gives!?" Robin demanded.

"Look at that," Cassius said. "House arrest."

"We weren't done speaking," Batman said.

"You can save your ass chewing for someone who cares," Cassius said. "And you can shove your speech up your ass."

Batman glared at him for a moment before continuing. "The Justice League will discuss the matter further _in private_. Right now, the three of you will be leaving to find a more secure location to keep the girls while her eye heals. Once the League reaches a decision, we will tell you."

"You will reach a decision now," Aqualad said. "Here. With us. Cassius is a member of our team, and we will not sit by and allow you to make a decision regarding his place on this team that we are not a part of."

"Forget it," Cassius said. "They still won't trust me, so nothing's going to change anyway. I'm not going to deal with it, and I'm not going to have them constantly spying on everything Cassandra and Rose do because they refuse to trust them either."

"We'll put it to a vote," Superman said. "You all included, even you, Cassius. Those in favor of taking the children in?"

The entire team raised their hands, as did Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, both Green Lanterns, Black Canary, Shazam, Zatara, all raised their hands. The rest, did not.

"The majority has it," Superman said. "They stay."

The Justice League members who had voted in favor almost all nodded approvingly, Black Canary smiling at Cassius, who nodded a thanks, but the rest of the Team, aside from Megan and Aqualad, were all glaring at their personal mentors, who had voted against it.

"Well, I suppose if they're going to stay, they should be assigned to a mentor," Batman said. "I'll do it."

"No," Cassius said. "I'm taking care of them."

"I was including you," Batman said. "I still don't trust any of you three, and I believe it's a mistake to take them in, but this will give you the chance to change my mind."

Cassius glared at him for a moment before nodding. "Fine."

"Very well," Superman nodded. "Then I guess this meeting is finished."

The rest of the League agreed, and the mentors, minus Batman, tried to assure their sidekicks that they trusted them, only for all of them to brush off their attempts and storm out of the room, including Aqualad, only Megan not being angry when she left, or needing Martian Manhunter to explain anything. Batman walked over to Cassius and the other two, both of whom stepped behind Cassius slightly.

"They trust you a great deal," Batman said.

"Yeah," Cassius said. "Funny how people are _normally_ grateful when you do the right thing."

"I'm not going to act like I think differently than I do," Batman said. "You're going to come back to the Batcave with me. I'll have a suit made for them both, and I'll test all three of your capabilities. Each of you will choose a new code name, and then you will train."

"And when the Team has a mission?" Cassius asked.

"You will go," Batman said. "And then you will return."

Cassius narrowed his eyes for a moment before nodding. "Fine. Not like I'd have any more privacy here than I would at your mansion, right Batman?"

Batman's eyes narrowed dangerously. "How?"

"Easy," Cassius said. "Trade secret, though. Can't tell you. Oh, but, speaking of telling you things." He fished a thumb drive out of his pocket. "This will come in handy for the Justice League."

"What is it?" Batman asked.

"Everything I know about the League of Shadows," Cassius said. "Bases, houses, a hidden tunnel to be used when breaking people out of Belle Reve prison, identities of Shadows and their top agents, as well as a list of capabilities, both superpowers and otherwise, the people I believe are the identities of the organization the Shadows serve, called the Light."

Batman stared at him, before turning and crossing the room in four strides, catching Superman by the shoulder as he was about to enter the Zeta tube. "Get this to the Watchtower and see what's on it. Scrub it for viruses and tracking devices first. If it's what I think it is, and you'll know if it is, call the League in."

Superman nodded and used the Zeta tube to go to the Watchtower before Batman, Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose all headed to the Bat Cave. As they arrived, there was a butler in his seventies waiting. Once the tube had powered down, Batman turned to them, pulling off his cowl. None of them reacted in surprise.

"Do you two recognize me?" Batman asked.

"No," Rose said, though Cassandra nodded.

"How?" Batman asked.

"I read your body language when I saw you on TV as Bruce Wayne and recognized the same body language from Batman," Cassandra signed.

"Wow," Cassius smiled. "Now impressive."

Cassandra smiled proudly.

"She's mute?" Batman asked.

"No," Cassius said. "Cain beat her anytime she made any noise that sounded like speech until the only language she spoke was body language, literally, so I taught her sign language. I'm teaching her to read and write too, slowly, and we're working on getting her speaking and understanding English."

"I could help with reading and writing, if you would like," Alfred offered.

Cassandra shook her head, gripping Cassius's arm.

"That's alright," Cassius said. "I can manage."

"As you wish," Alfred nodded.

Just then, the massive computer filling a huge alcove off to one side switched on with Superman's face.

"Batman, you'd better get to the Watchtower," Superman said. "I'm pretty sure it's exactly what you thought."

Batman nodded. "On my way. Alfred, these three will be staying here for a while and working under me. Would you mind helping them get started?"

Alfred nodded just as Robin appeared. Batman asked him to help Alfred, then left to the Watchtower.

"Where's he going?" Robin asked.

"I gave the Justice League a thumb drive with every bit of information I had on the League of Shadows," Cassius said. "So, where do we start?"

"Testing your abilities, Cassius Bat man will want to test you himself, then costumes and codenames," Robin said. "Come on. I'll spar with Cassandra first. Rose, are you good to spar?"

"I'm still high as a kite off of morphine," Rose said. "So no."

Robin nodded. "We'll skip yours for now, then."

Rose nodded and Robin led Cassandra to a circle of lights in the middle of the Batcave. Then he turned to her, preparing himself. A moment later, he was lying on his back with Cassandra holding a foot on his neck.

"Wha...How'd you do that!?" Robin asked as she let him up.

"Her primary literal language is body language," Cassius said. "She can read everything, even a twitch in your muscles, and instantly know what you're going to do next. Even before you do, since most of fighting is muscle memory. She's so good she's able to read people almost as well as a telepath."

Robin stood, shaking his head. "Alright. Let's try that again, then."

Cassandra nodded and he stepped forward, throwing fast jab at her, however, it had been a feint, and she knew it, so rather than bothering to try to block it, she swept his feet out from under him and pinned him to the ground, this time with a knife to his throat.

"Okay," Robin said. "Batman's going to have to test you too."

"If it helps, she and Rose fought Deathstroke to keep me alive," Cassius said.

"They'd have to both be good at fighting, then," Robin said. "Alright. For right now, we'll move on to the basic tests like reflexes, senses, and strength of different muscle groups."

The three newest Batman sidekicks nodded and followed him. The tests lasted hours, and by the end of it, Cassius's body was in agony. However, they were finally finished.

"Okay," Robin said. "You all did good. Next, we'll take your measurements for your uniforms. So, you'll have to take your shirts and pants off.

"I'll be making my own uniform, thanks," Cassius said.

"And we're not giving you a strip show, pervert," Rose said, glaring at Robin.

"What?" Robin asked, face darkening. "No! It's not like that! Jeez! What kind of nine year old even thinks to say something like that?"

"One raised by Deathstroke," Cassius said.

"C...Cassius," Cassandra said.

He looked over at her, seeing her looking at Robin. "You want me to do it?"

Cassandra nodded, smiling.

Robin shrugged and nodded. "Alright. I'll make a list of what measurements we need. Come on. Let's head up to the house so you can have some privacy."

They all nodded and headed up into the house. Once there, he led them to a library they could use for measuring and handed Cassius the list. Once Cassius had their measurements written down, he gave it to Alfred and he headed to the cave to start designing them suits, everyone thanking him. Then, Robin began to give them a tour.

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	23. Chapter 23

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Home Invasion

Cassius bounced across the floor, growling irritably and pushing himself back to his feet. Then, he carefully moved to strike again. To say that Batman was good at fighting was the same as saying that there were a lot of skilled fighters in the League of Shadows. Understatement of the century. However, he'd been trained by several of those skilled fighters, so he was able to hold his own decently against Batman. He didn't win, or even come close, but he _did_ manage to not get absolutely slaughtered like when Robin sparred with Batman. But still, that was nothing compared to Cassandra. Her ability to read his body language gave her a huge edge, and thanks to the training she herself went through, she was even better than Cassius. At least, when he didn't use his powers. With powers, his edge was just a tad sharper than hers.

Batman called his and Cassius's match after several rounds, Cassius having won none of them. Then, Cassandra's started. It was brutal, but compared to what Cassandra was subjected to by everyone besides Cassius, it was pretty par for the course. And she did well. Out of their five rounds, she won two. Once they were finished, Batman sent them up to the house to get cleaned up. Once they had, they all had breakfast, then headed back down to the cave to see their new uniforms. Or, at least, the other two's.

Rose's was made out of a combination of Kevlar and depleted promethium that Cassius had pulled a lot of strings to get his hands on, was mostly flat black, had knee-high orange greaves, orange vambraces with three small bladed fins on the outside of each like Batman's, an orange utility belt, a high collar, and a smooth, flat black cowl attached to the back that covered her upper face, though it only had an eyehole on the left side, with the lense having a tiny microcomputer in it to give her infrared, thermal, and telescopic vision, and the back of the cowl had a pair of ties to tighten it and help hold it on, the cloths falling behind her to the middle of her back, along with he hair. Hanging from her utility belt were a pair of scabbards containing the two longswords Cassius had taken from Deathstroke's house with the "Y" shaped hilts. Batman had swapped the blades with sturdier, blunt blades that could be used for a weapon without dismembering someone. The last addition to her armor were the orange holsters strapped to her thighs with a pair of black Walther PPQs which she kept loaded with rubber bullets, and another holster on her back with her own personal pistol, a modified Colt M1911 with a compensator, slide rail extension, and extended magazine, in it positioned for her right hand to grab if she needed to use lethal force, meaning if her father showed up.

Cassandra's suit was also made from a combination of Kevlar and depleted promethium, was also mostly black, and had three bent yellow lines like insect legs, or maybe ribs, reaching toward her front from the sides, yellow splints down the outsides of her arms, pauldrons ringed in yellow a yellow circle in the middle, then half a second circle attached to it from the bottom of the pauldrons, a yellow utility belt, a pair of black grieves with yellow highlights around the plates, and a cloth full-face mask with the back attached to the back of her suit's collar, which was extremely stretchy and breathable, allowing her to wear it comfortably, see through it, and still conceal her entire face. She had small, sharp, retractable, claws in the ends of her gloves fingers, a wakizashi across the back of her waist with the hilt on the right side, one which Cassius had swapped the blade for a must more sturdy blunt one so she wouldn't have to worry about killing anyone with it, and she had an emergency blade above it that consisted of a katana-style hilt with a channel in the back where several blade segments were concealed and would fold out into a sharp, sturdy katana blade forged from titanium, making it must more sturdy than necessary, but Cassius had felt better knowing it wouldn't break if she needed it when he was designing it for Batman to have created and delivered through Wayne Enterprises. She also had had several dozen batarangs somehow, magically concealed in her utility belt, hers being rounded into a crescent with three pints along the back, a small rounded notch between them, giving them a wing shape. She was amazing with them, too. She almost never missed.

Cassius himself had decided on his formfitting armor with the lower face mask as his hero costume, since he was most used to forming that anyway, and it fit the rest of the Bat Clan's look. He formed into it as Cassandra and Rose both walked into the room in theirs, both with their masks on.

"You look good," he smiled.

"Thanks," Rose smiled.

"So do you," Cassandra signed.

"Alright you three," Robin said, walking over. "Time to choose your new names, then we're heading to the Cave to reintroduce you three to the Team and make sure you three know how to use teamwork."

"They're better at it than me," Cassius said.

"Only because we were trying to protect you," Cassandra signed, Cassius smiling behind his mask.

"We still have to test it," Robin said. "Alright. Cassius, you sticking with Void?"

"Of course," Cassius smirked. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Besides, any time I fuck up the Shadows' plans, I want them to know it was me."

"Speaking of, the League raided all of the locations you gave them," Robin said. "They're about to be very angry with you."

"I'll be ready," Cassius said. "I'll be having Cassandra teach me to fight."

Cassandra laughed into her hand, Rose snorting in amusement.

Robin simply shook his head. "Alright then. Rose, what about you?"

"I'll stick with my Shadows alias, too," Rose said. "Ravager. My father's going to be mad when he hears I'm working against the Shadows with the name he wanted his successor to have."

"You two are crazy," Robin said. "What about you, Cassandra?"

"Orphan," Cassandra signed.

"Orphan?" Robin frowned. "Wasn't that..."

"My father's," she signed, Cassius almost able to feel her face falling, despite her mask.

He pulled her into a hug and she snipped softly, holding him tightly, though she didn't cry. Not this time, at least. She had cried for him before. Several times. In the past couple weeks they'd been there, she'd relived both of her kills multiple times as nightmares, and it had gotten so bad that Cassius had begun sleeping with her so that he could wake her from her nightmares and calm her afterward without having to walk from his room to hers each time.

"Okay," Robin nodded, turning to the control panel beside the Zeta tube, typing on it for a moment. "Let's go then."

The four of them stepped into the tube, and the computer chimed in instantly. "Recognize Robin, B-Zero-One, Void, B-Zero-Five, Ravager, B-Zero-Nine, Orphan, B-One-Zero."

Cassius smiled as the Zeta tube activated and they were transported to the Cave, finding the rest of the team waiting. All of them rushed forward to welcome them back, all of them happily greeting the Team in return.

"It's so good to see you again!" Megan smiled. "How was the training?"

"Harsh," Cassius said. "Very harsh. Though, he doesn't intentionally break joints just to see hoe many times they can heal in a fight, so I've done worse."

"He also doesn't shoot us," Rose added, both Cassius and Cassandra nodding.

"And on that happy note," Kid Flash said. "We have cake!"

Both girls lit up, Cassandra's smile visible even through her mask, though she looked to Cassius for permission.

"What are you looking at me for?" Cassius grinned. "You want cake, dig in."

Both yanked their hoods off, Rose exposing the black eyepatch she now wore, since her eye had finished healing finally, though obviously remained blind. They ran to the kitchen, Kid Flash speeding ahead of them to be able to serve them, but as Cassius moved to follow, Aqualad and Robin caught his shoulders, the three waiting as Artemis, Superboy, and Megan left for the kitchen.

"Two things," Robin said.

"Firstly, Sportsmaster insinuated that there was a mole on the team," Aqualad said keeping his voice barely above a whisper, so that even Superboy wouldn't hear. "We are not sure if he meant you, or someone else. This was during my last mission when you were rescuing Cassandra and Rose."

Cassius nodded, neglecting to say who the mole was, which was the only bit of information he hadn't included on the Shadows, and had gone to great lengths to ensure the League wouldn't find out when he gave them the rest of the information.

"The other thing is a condition for you being allowed to have cake," Robin said, grinning as the mood lightened again.

"And that would be?" Cassius asked.

"No more aliases," Robin said. "We're all friends, so you should call us by our names. Except me. Batman's rules."

"You're such a Dick," Cassius smirked, Robin rolling his eyes. "Fine. I'll pay the tole. And I'll keep an ear to the ground."

Aqualad nodded and the three of them went to join the others. After about two hours of celebrating and socializing, everyone headed to bed, Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose all staying in the Cave, as Batman had given them a few days leave from training to relax while he handled Justice League business. The next day, the three of them spent some time sparring, nothing to the level of Batman, but enough to keep themselves from getting sore and stiff before having to try and fight him again. They also spent a huge portion of the day with Cassius helping Cassandra with learning English and learning to read and write, and a clone teaching Rose American sign language. Finally, they left the Cave's living room where they'd been studying and heaved to the front door where the rest of the present members of the Team were standing around Connor's motorcycle while Wally worked on it. Of the Team, Robin and Artemis were still not present, Robin being at school and Artemis being wherever she was.

"Torque wrench," Wally said.

"Probably not the best idea to let the team's comedy relief fix the motorcycle," Cassius said.

"Very funny," Wally said. "I'm almost done."

"I have been meaning to ask," Kaldur said. "Any problem juggling school work with your responsibilities here?"

"No," Connor said.

"Juggling's just one of my many talents," Wally said. "Socket wrench."

"What talents are those?" Cassius asked as Megan floated the next tool over to him. "Besides making a fool of yourself?"

"Cheerleading practice _has_ presented a challenge," Megan said. "Oh, but my first loyalty is _always_ to the team. _This_ team, not the Bumblebees."

"Artemis starts school today," Kaldur said. "Do you think _she_ will have trouble maintaining her loyalties?"

Cassius raised an eyebrow. He knew what Kaldur was doing, but his tone was starting to give him away.

"Nah, she'll manage alright," Wally smiled, standing, then caught himself, eyes widening slightly. "I mean, how much more hostile and annoying can she-"

An explosion ripped through the Cave from behind them, Cassius's entire body erupting into agony as his goo burned. He shouted in pain as he bounced and rolled to a stop before struggling to push himself up, his body shaking like a dry leaf in the wind. The others all stood quickly, Rose and Cassandra sprinting to him.

"Cassandra, help the others fight whoever it is," Cassius said, only to hear water behind him. He turned to look just as three massive pillars of water shot into the air and curved forward before crashing down, one on Wally, another on Superboy, and the third on the three of them. He flipped and spun through the water, his burns cooling slowly and beginning to regenerate, only for the water to drop him just in time for another explosion to hit him, this time robbing him of consciousness.

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	24. Chapter 24

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Useless Again

Cassius sucked in a pained breath, eyes slowly fluttering open, only for a flood of agony to greet him. He tried to scream, but a weak whimper was all he could manage.

"Cassius," Kaldur said from behind him.

He slowly pushed himself up, looking around at the cage made of flames around himself, Megan, and Kaldur. Megan was unconscious, and Kaldur was sweating profusely, but Cassius's body was slowly charring starting from the places nearest the flames and spreading inward. It was going to take a _very_ long time for him to recover from this. He wouldn't be using goo for months.

"W...Where..." he began to pant, collapsing back to the ground, eyes fluttering.

"...hangar," Kaldur was saying as his brain began to register the world around him again. "We are being held hostage by two robots, similar in design to Red Tornado, but controlling fire and water respectively. The female controls fire, and the male water. Robin and Artemis are here, and have been given ten minutes to surrender or else we will be killed."

"I might...not...last..." he took several breaths before frowning. "Where...are..."

"Cassandra and Rose are frozen on the floor below us with Superboy and Wally," Kaldur said. "Try not to speak or move. You must conserve your strength."

Cassius tried to agree, but a slightly louder than normal breath was all he could manage, barely even a snort. After several minutes, he heard several explosions and the roar of flames, as well as Superboy shouting, but his brain was starting to fog. He heard Kaldur's voice, he could hear Rose's. He could even hear Cassandra shouting his name. He felt his chest compress. They must be terrified. He was supposed to protect them and yet, here he was, slow roasting while they were about to drown. And yet, there was nothing he could do. even opening his eyes felt impossible at the moment.

He could hear the robots counting. He couldn't understand their words anymore. He tried again to open his eyes, but they wouldn't comply. He realized they must have already burned. He couldn't possibly have much time left. Maybe a few minutes. Maybe less. He didn't hear anyone shouting anymore, but that could just be because his eardrums had burned. He couldn't tell what was going on anymore. There was just darkness and silence, like he was floating in a void. And he was so tired. Maybe this was what it was to die. Just nothingness. Just an end. Or maybe he was just waiting for an angel to come and take him to the gates of Heaven to be judged. He doubted he'd be judged favorably. Not after all he'd done. But as long as Cassandra and Rose were safe, that'd be enough.

He yawned, feeling himself starting to drift away. He was so tired. Felt like forever since he'd just let go. Slept for a while. Maybe he could rest for a few minutes. He was sure the others wouldn't mind too much. Right? A few minutes couldn't hurt. They weren't in the middle of a job, right? And there was such a nice breeze. Just cool enough to be comforting. He frowned. When had it gotten cool? He couldn't remember. He'd been so warm a second ago. Or, at least, he though he had. It wasn't bad, but it was making it hard to sleep. He frowned. No, it wasn't the cold that was making it hard to sleep. there was something else. What was it? He couldn't quite remember, and he couldn't quite focus. It was so hard.

He felt like there was something. No, there should definitely be something. It was scratching at the fringes of his awareness, screaming and pleading to be heard. No, not to be heard. It was his name, and it wasn't screaming, it was crying. He let out a long, pained breath, trying to open his eyes only to once again find they refused to respond. His ears were still only partially functional, but they were healing. Why were they healing? Slowly memories filtered in. Teaching Cassandra to read and write. teaching Rose sign language. There had been an explosion. Finally, he remembered. The cage. The fire. He'd burned.

"Cassius!" Cassandra's voice pleaded, just as he found he could feel again, or maybe that he could process it, as he felt her arms tighten around his neck.

"Cassandra...y-you're gonna...choke him if you squeeze much tighter," Rose's wavering voice said, though Cassandra didn't loosen her grip any.

"C...Cass...an...dra," Cassius rasped, voice barely more than an exhale, though as soon as he'd said her name, both Cassandra and Rose began to sob anew, a second set of arms holding him now.

He tried to open his eyes again and finally succeeded, though his vision was blurred for almost twenty seconds before he was able to look down at himself and the two girls sobbing into him, Cassandra into the center of his chest and Rose into the front of his right shoulder. His body was surrounded by the remaining ice chunks that the girls, Superboy, and Wally had been trapped in, but he could tell that probably seventy five percent of his body, maybe more, was still charred at a minimum on the surface.

"You are awake," Kaldur said, kneeling in front of him.

"Not...for long," Cassius said. "When I...close...my eyes...I'll...sleep for...days."

Kaldur nodded. "I'll make it short then. Artemis and Robin managed to save us with an electromagnetic pulse. Cassandra managed to used a small explosive from her belt to break the ice, though she and Rose both suffered minor burns in the process, nothing major. We used the ice to cool your burns, but Red Tornado left with the two androids that attacked us, we are unsure whether it was willing or because he was hacked."

"Hacked," Cassius said, then mouthed, "he's not the mole."

Kaldur's eyes widened, but as he opened his mouth to ask if Cassius knew who it was, Cassius's eyes slipped closed and darkness claimed him again.

* * *

Cassius winced as he began to be pulled toward consciousness again. This time wasn't as disorienting as the last. This time, the switch was fast, so it only took him a few seconds to know that Cassandra was clinging to him and whimpering, tears leaking from her eyes as one of her nightmares played through her dreams. He restrained a groan as he pushed himself up, shaking her gently. After a moment, she gasped harshly, eyes flying open as she moved to sit bolt upright, only for Cassius to gently pull her into a hug. After a moment, she began to cry, though in relief and joy that he was alright, unlike normal. After another moment, the bed shifted behind him and he glanced back just before Rose wrapped her arms around him as well, also beginning to cry. He sighed, turning so that he could hold both, both pressing their faces into his shoulders. As they cried he held them tightly, a hand stroking gently up and down each of their backs calmingly, Cassius shushing them softly. Slowly, both of their sobs began to taper off. One they had, Cassius lay back down, holding both against him, both holding him tightly.

"How long was I asleep?" Cassius asked.

"Almost a day," Rose said. "The rest of the team is out on a mission."

"Where?" Cassius asked.

"India," Rose said. "We weren't there for the brief. We were with you."

Cassius nodded. "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you two."

Both sat up, shaking their heads.

"Forget about us!" Rose said.

"Y...You...important...too," Cassandra said, then signed the rest. "We were more afraid that you would die than we were about ourselves."

"We don't want to lose you either," Rose said. "We don't need you to protect us all the time if it means you're in danger. If you died, we'd both be devastated."

Cassius nodded, smiling, and pulled both back down so he could hold them, both wrapping their arms back around him. It was strange having someone worry about him as much as they did, enough to cry because he was hurt. It made his chest both feel warm and compress painfully at the same time. It was uncomfortable, and yet pleasant. He decided to worry about it after he'd rested more. He needed to worry about recovering first. Then he'd try to figure what he was feeling. He closed his eyes, feeling the girls both drift off in seconds before quickly following.

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	25. Chapter 25

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Injustice

Cassius remained silent as they flew. His goo still wasn't working, a full week later. He could only barely control them enough to change what he was wearing. However, his break was over. A group of villains known as the Injustice League had begun to conduct simultaneous attacks across multiple cities around the world. The Injustice League consisted of Joker, Poison Ivy, Count Vertigo, Atomic Skull, Wotan, Black Adam, and Ultra-Humanite. They had demanded ten billion American Dollars as a ransom, thankfully with no time limit, so the Justice League had begun to fight the massive, Kobra-Venom-powered plants they were controlling, some of which had Joker Venom mixed in. They were just the distraction, though. The Team was being sent to deal with the Injustice League directly. It was a huge step up from being assigned missions to keep them busy, and it was also proof that the Justice League was ready to trust them. But most of all, it was _dangerous_. Cassius had no ability to use his powers, and was worried about letting Cassandra and Rose be on the mission. However, as they were the only people in the world that he truly cared about more than himself, he supposed worrying about them was natural. He took a deep breath, letting out a long inhale to keep from sighing. He needed to get used to letting them defend themselves. Both were exceptionally skilled, and more than capable of defending themselves. He needed to be able to have faith in them, rather than allowing his worry for their safety to control him. He smiled. Far cry from a heartless assassin.

"We're entering Bayou Bartholomew," Megan reported.

He opened his eyes, looking around at the others just as Kaldur, who apparently had nearly been replaced as leader over not telling the rest of the team there might be a mole, turned to him.

"Void, are you able to use your goo at all?" Kaldur asked.

"No," Cassius said. "Nothing. I'll be sticking to normal people fighting for this."

Kaldur nodded. "Orphan and Ravager, you two will remain with Void at all times. The three of you will protect each other. Void, if anything happens with your group during the mission, you have my permission to make a decision and inform us when able. I trust your judgement enough to give you command of your own group within the team, and as this is the first mission Orphan and Ravager have gone off, it will be better if you are in charge of them, as they trust you exclusively."

"Understood," Cassius nodded. "Don't worry. Both of them will be assets."

Kaldur nodded.

"What's in the duffel?" Wally asked.

"Plan B," Kaldur said, just as Megan groaned.

"You alright?" Connor asked worriedly.

"Dizzy," Megan said.

"Martians get airsick?" Robin asked.

"She _does_ look a bit greener than usual," Wally said.

"Not me, her," Megan said.

"I feel fine," Artemis said.

"Not _her_," Artemis said. "The Bio-Ship. She's trying to shield us, but..."

"It's Vertigo," Cassius said. "His powers allow him to give anyone, well, vertigo. Dizziness, nausea, fainting. Everyone better brace for a rough landing."

Instantly, everyone's restraints tightened just as the ship began to shudder and shake, rolling first one way, then the other. Finally, something crashed into the underside of the Bio-Ship, sending it flipping and rolling before it crashed to the ground, bouncing along the river. Just as it stopped, massive roots burst out of the water, wrapping around it, beginning to drag it under. Then, Black Adam ripped a hold in the ship, only for Megan to grunt in pain and report that he was hurting the ship, prompting Connor to drill a punch into his face, sending him hurtling away. Then, the hole was underwater and water began to flood in through the hole, the room rapidly beginning to fill.

"No," Artemis said flatly. "_No way_ I'm nearly drowning three missions in a row."

"But you should be an expert by after this one," Cassius said, running his hand along the wall beside himself. "It's alright, girl. We can take it from here."

He glanced at Artemis and Wally, Robin having already disappeared into the water, as Artemis held out a rebreather to Wally.

"Wow," Wally said, accepting the device. "Uh, thanks."

"M'gann!" Connor said, pulling Megan out of her head. "We need to get out. Open a hatch."

"Hello, Megan!" Megan said, forming herself gills. "Of course!"

She dove under and Cassius turned to Rose and Cassandra.

"Take a deep breath," Cassius said, both nodding.

Then, the three of them followed the rest under the water and through the large hole in the floor, including Connor's newest pet, a shoulder-height white wolf that he had, fittingly, named Wolf. They swam for a long ways, far enough that Cassius's lungs were burning for air, and rounded a bank before surfacing. Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose all gasped for breath as soon as they were clear, watching the Bio-Ship be dragged the rest of the way under.

"She's in shock," Megan said. "She'll need time to recover."

Just then, Vertigo's power slammed into them all, dropping them to the ground.

"Vertigo!" Wally groaned.

"_Count_ Vertigo, to _you_ peasant!" Vertigo corrected him.

Connor began to stand just as Black Adam arrived, drilling a punch into his face.

"You're fucking lucky I can't use my powers right now," Connor growled, struggling to ignore his nausea enough to get up.

"Ah yes, the two runaways and the traitor," Vertigo said. "The League of Shadows will be very grateful when we give them you three."

Just then, Kaldur pulled water from off to the side using his Water Bearers and sent it crashing into Vertigo, hurling him away.

_"Robin, Miss Martian, disappear!"_ Kaldur ordered through their telepathic link. _"We will keep them busy. You two fulfill the mission objective."_

Just as Kaldur finished, Black Adam slammed a punch into his head. Then, Rose and Cassandra's feet both crashed into Black Adam's face, knocking him back a step before Cassius managed to finally regain his feet, leaping forward and Superman Punching Black Adam in the nose. It did very little besides hurt Cassius's hand, but it distracted Black Adam just long enough. Just as he lifted Cassius by the throat, Connor's fist crashed down on Black Adam's forearm, freeing Cassius before he punched Black Adam, hurling him away. However, he only staggered back a couple steps this time. He rocketed forward, grabbing Connor and slamming him to the ground before beginning to plow him through it. At the same time, Vertigo's power slammed into them all again, once again dropping them to the ground. This time, however, Cassius collapsed to the ground, groaning as his head spun before darkness flooded his mind, claiming him.

As he stirred, he felt himself moving, though he was lying on something solid, like metal. He groaned softly, and within seconds, a set of hand was holding each of his. He smiled. Cassandra and Rose, at a minimum, were okay. He opened his eyes, seeing the inside of a cage made of glowing, orange, magical energy with bars connecting the upper and lower plates. Kaldur tried to use his tattoos mystical power to pry two bars apart, but achieved nothing but tiring himself out. Cassius sighed, giving both girls' hands a squeeze, warning them to be ready. Both smiled, and he sat up, looking around. Wotan was maintaining the cage, Black Adam was carrying it, judging by the feet trailing behind them, and Cassius had a feeling Vertigo was on top of the cage. Currently, their chances of escape were essentially nothing. He'd have to wait. Just as a building with two large rounded walls leaning away from each other and a green dome making up the rest of it came into view, the Bio-Ship suddenly shot over them, slamming into Wotan's head and knocking him out, freeing themselves. Cassandra and Rose flipped instantly, both sticking a small bomb to Black Adam's chest as they passed him. Cassius smiled. Such a well-behaved ship.

He looked up at Black Adam just as the bombs exploded, sending him flying, leaving behind a trail of smoke. Vertigo crashed down into a tree, off to one side, and just as Cassius pushed himself to his feet, Ultra-Humanite stepped out from behind a tree, holding a grenade launcher with a large cylinder to hold its rounds. The great white gorilla's hair was caked in mud, and his brain was exposed, making Cassius grimace slightly, though he could worry about being grossed out by an exposed brain later.

Cassius lunged instantly, knocking the gun aside before he could be shot, then slammed a fist into its face, knocking it back a step. Then, he jumped, slamming a roundhouse kick into the side of its head before dropping into a low crouch. Cassandra and Rose both stepped off of his shoulders and leapt forward, slamming a pair of drop kicks into Ultra-Humanite's face, knocking him back several more. Then, Connor crashed into the him, tackling him.

Kaldur and Artemis turned as Poison Ivy stepped up onto a raise chunk of ground off to the group's right. They both reached for their weapons, only to realize they'd been taken, as had Rose and Cassandra's guns and swords.

"Ugh, I feel naked," Artemis said. "And not in a fun way."

"You're a bit young to know about the fun way to be naked," Cassius said, stepping up beside her.

"We will make our own fun," Kaldur said, leaning out of the way of a massive root that Poison Ivy tried to impale him on, "as we have been trained. Maneuver Seven!"

He and Artemis both sprinted at each other as Cassius charged. Ivy sent several roots at him, only for him to dodge out of the way, then leap onto one. As he did, Kaldur hurled Artemis into the air. Then, Artemis slammed a drop kick into Ivy. Both women landed on their feet in the water, but just as they did, Cassius slammed his fist down into Ivy's head. Off to one side, Cassandra and Rose were voiding Vertigo's line of sight, which was how he aimed his power, along with Black Adam, mostly keeping him distracted. A moment later, Wally sped past both, dropping off their weapons in the process, before both drew their blunted swords, instantly changing tactics. Cassius grabbed Ivy by the arm as she was distracted by trying to attack Artemis with her roots, then spun, hurling Ivy into a tree and knocking her out. Then, he looked back to Cassandra and Rose as Cassandra managed to get close enough to Vertigo to slam her blunted wakizashi into his gut, dropping him before kicking him in the head to knock him out. At the same time, Rose slammed her swords both down into Black Adam's shoulders at the point where it transitioned into the neck. As a result of striking perfectly, Black Adam went down hard. Just then, the mass of roots growing out of the top of the domed building exploded, Robin and Megan standing where it was.

"Timber," Robin said.

Just then, a beam of golden energy slammed into Megan's back, Joker and Atomic Skull, a withered husk of a man with a helmet to channel his power's energy into a beam, turned to chase both her and Robin, who went to help her up. As they did, Cassius, Rose, and Cassandra moved to meet the pair.

"Handle Atomic Skull!" Cassius instructed.

Both nodded, branching off to meet him as Cassius charged Joker. As they neared their targets, however, Wotan returned, a bolt of blue, electric, mystical energy crashed into each of their chests. Cassius grit his teeth against the pain, struggling to move, only for the force of the beam to hold him pinned tot he ground. Then, the Bio-Ship suddenly dropped Kaldur's duffel bag in front of him as he held both his and Megan's beams back. He unzipped it and pulled out the Helmet of Fate.

"No, Aqualad!" Wally shouted. "Don't!"

A moment later, there was a flash of golden light and Aqualad was wearing Doctor Fate's blue and gold costume. Wotan's beam had ended as soon as he saw the Helmet of Fate, so Cassius stood, charging at Joker again, Cassandra and Rose likewise continuing toward their designated target.

"Wotan, you are mine," Doctor Fate said, before easily overpowering Wotan's attack, binding him in glowing gold chains.

"Wonder Boy, you are mine," Joker said, mimicking Doctor Fate's voice, as he stepped up over Robin, who was still struggling to stand.

Then, just as Joker laughed, Cassius reached him, stripping the knife from his hand and hurling it into a tree before spinning and slamming a windmill kick into the side of Joker's head, hurling him. Joker stood, drawing two more knives just as Cassandra reached him, Atomic Skull unconscious off to the side already, Rose already cuffing him. Cassandra moved to fight Joker, except something was off. He slashed at her, but her sword was too far away. His knife cut shallowly into her. He stepped forward and turned his hand, so she prepared to block a stab, only for Joker's other hand to slash. The knife tore down across her chest, fortunately sparking off of a promethium plate, before his first knife stabbed amid Joker's slash's follow through, driving itself into her side. She shouted in pain just before Cassius jumped, slamming a foot into his face. He crashed into a wall before Batman stepped out from behind it, dropping Joker almost instantly. Cassius turned to Cassandra as she pulled the knife out, holding her hand to the injury.

"You should have left that in," Cassius said, Cassandra waving her off.

"I don't understand," Cassandra signed. "His movements didn't make sense. He looked like he was going to kick when he stabbed, and like he'd headbutt me when he slashed the second time, but the first slash looked like it would be a knee before he actually attacked. I couldn't read him."

"Joker's known for being unpredictable," Cassius said. "Seems that's even true for you."

Cassandra nodded, both looking around as more Justice League members arrived.

Cassius walked over to Joke, ripping some of his suit off and folding it several times before pressing it to Cassandra's side. She applied pressure and nodded, and they walked over to the others.

"There will be another day," Vertigo said as he and the rest of the Injustice League were surrounded, minus Joker.

"That's what you think!" Joker suddenly snarled, raising his hands and moving his fingers like he had strings attached.

Sensors and wires glowed white on the insides of his gloves as massive roots burst out of the ground. Pods along them exploded, spreading Joker Venom into the air. Batman shot forward, punching Joker and knocking him out a second time just as Doctor Fate flew into the air.

"Fear not!" Doctor Fate said, a massive, shining, golden ankh forming in the air in front of him, sucking in the Joker Venom. Once it was gone, he let the ankh disappear. "Fate has intervened!"

The Justice League gathered up the Injustice League and left with them, minus the main members.

"What were you thinking!?" Connor demanded, glaring angrily at Megan. "How could you let him put on the helmet!?"

"Nabu will never release him now," Wally said. "Kaldur will be trapped inside Doctor Fate forever."

Doctor Fate watched them for a moment before reaching up and pulling off the helmet, a blinding golden light obscuring him before leaving Kaldur behind, holding the Helmet of Fate.

"Nabu let you go?" Wally asked.

"He almost did not," Kaldur said. "But your friend Kent was most helpful. He says hello."

Wally grinned, just as Batman walked over to them.

"We're done here," Batman said. "The Injustice League has been neutralized. As for _your_ performance...It was satisfactory. In particular, Orphan and Ravager, you two did well. Better than I would have expected of your age."

"Agreed," Robin nodded. "Nice work you two."

Both girls smiled proudly, each taking one of Cassius's hands, Cassius smiling and rolling his eyes, giving their hands a light squeeze. Batman was apparently done speaking because he turned, walking back to the rest of the Justice League members still present and they all left. Megan brought the Bio-Ship in to allow them all to board and Cassius took Cassandra to a room in the back where she could take off her suit in privacy for him to clean and bandage her injuries for her. Then, once she was dressed again, they returned to the others and settled in to fly back, all of them congratulating each other on their performance, all of the others heaping praise on Cassandra and Rose for taking down a member when the rest of them struggled to do so.

* * *

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	26. Chapter 26

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Wayward Teacher

Cassius watched as Cassandra and Rose sparred. Rose couldn't keep up with Cassandra any better than any of the rest of the Team could, but something was different. Cassandra was hesitating. Cassius knew what caused the change. It was the Joker. Her inability to read his movements had made her doubt her ability to read others. After a few minutes of her being overly cautious and neither taking the other down, Cassius finally ended the match, both stopping as the light on the floor turned off. He sighed, walking over to them.

"Good work Rose," Cassius said. You're improving quickly."

Rose smiled proudly and Cassius turned to Cassandra, who hung her head, apparently expecting to get scolded. Cassius crouched down so that Cassandra was looking at him, seeing the patient, sympathetic smile on his face.

"Fighting Joker really hit you hard, huh?" he asked.

Cassandra nodded. "Couldn't...read."

"It's alright," Cassius said. "The Joker's insane. Like I said, he's unpredictable. It's understandable that even you wouldn't be able to read him. But could you read Rose when you were sparring?"

Cassandra nodded.

"Did she do what you thought she would every time?" Cassius asked.

Again, Cassandra nodded.

Cassius smiled, nodding as well. "Your abilities haven't changed or weakened any, Cass. You can still read people as well as ever. It's just the Joker who throws you off."

Cassandra frowned, tilting her head to the side. "Cass?"

Cassius blinked before realizing he'd never called her anything but her full name. He raised his hand to sign so that he knew she'd understand. "That's you. It's a nickname. A shorter version of your name. A nickname can also be a word that you call someone in place of a name to identify them, like if I always called you Kiddo, that would be your name."

"Kiddo?" Cassandra signed back.

"It's a term adults call children that they're close with," Cassius signed. "Usually their own child, or someone they care about like their own child."

Cassandra nodded.

"Do you want to try sparring me and see if you can still read me?" Cassius offered. "I won't use my goo. Promise."

Cassandra nodded.

He stood and glanced over to Rose, who nodded and started a sparring session. Cassius moved first, punching at Cassandra, who ducked to the outside. However, instead of countering, she retreated, getting distance from him. He moved to strike again, this time with a kick that he knew left him open for her to take him duck, but she shoved his foot into the kick more before again retreating.

"Cassandra, stop running away," Cassius said as he turned to her again. "You're stronger than this. Stop doubting yourself. Trust in your ability, or else you'll never be able to stop running away. If you allow fear of what might happen rule you, it'll be much, _much_ harder to take back control in order to stop being afraid. Trust yourself, and trust your ability to read people. You can do this."

Cassandra hesitated before nodding and settling into her beginning stance again. Cassius noticed she was a bit calmer and prepared himself again. This time, when he moved to strike, she knocked his hand away and slammed a punch into his gut before spinning around him, hooking a foot between his before wrapping her right arm around his torso and twisted, the leg between his tripping him when he tried to turn, allowing her to slam him to the ground and send him bouncing away. He pushed himself up, grinning.

"Much better," Cassius said. "I suppose it's safe for me to get serious too, now."

Cassandra nodded, smiling, and charged. She jumped, kicking at him, and he blocked her kick, shoving her upward. She flipped backward, landing in a low crouch and swept at his legs, only for him to flip to his hands, slamming a kick into her chest and throwing her backward. She landed in a backward somersault, ending up on her feet, and retaking her martial arts stance. Cassius charged and threw a feint punch, Cassandra stepping into it and easily brushing it aside, then blocked the knee he threw. As soon as her arms met it, she flipped forward, pushing off his knee, then grabbed his head under the jaw, flipping back down behind him and yanking him backward.

As he began to fall backward, he'd have shouted in surprise if his jaw wasn't being held firmly closed. As he fell backward, he rolled up her back before her arms swung forward, hurling him away from her, Cassius flipping end over end backward once before slamming on his back. As soon as he did, the computer announced that Cassandra had won the match, Cassius lying motionless for a moment, trying to regain his breath. Cassandra walked over to him and smiled, offering him her hand.

"That was awesome!" Cassius grinned as he stood with her help. "Where'd you learn that?"

Cassandra shrugged, then signed, "I just thought of it."

"You're incredible," Cassius smiled before she hugged him.

"Thank...you," Cassandra said.

"You're welcome," Cassius smiled, holding her tightly for a moment.

_"Cassius, Cassandra, Rose, come to the hangar," _Kaldur's voice said in their minds suddenly. _"We are going to find Red Tornado."_

Cassandra pulled back instantly and she and Rose ran toward their rooms to get their hero costumes. As they did, Cassius turned and walked toward the Hangar.

_"I'm on my way,"_ Cassius said. _"Cassandra and Rose are getting their gear, then they'll be there. Are we kidnapping our soon-to-be teammate?"_

_"Sure are," _Robin replied.

Earlier, while the others had all been training, Zatara had arrived to replace Black Canary as their babysitter for the week, and had brought his daughter, Zatanna, who Robin had instantly begun trying to flirt with. He was only slightly better than Wally, but she responded well to his attempts, so Cassius had a feeling it wouldn't be long until they were a couple. And despite Zatara claiming she was just visiting, none of them doubted the inevitability of her joining the team. The others had gone to "give her a tour of the cave," at Zatara's suggestion, once they'd admitted to having been having a psychic conversation about Zatara still not trusting them and about Shazam having been at the Cave with them for the last week because he didn't trust them either, though Shazam had spent that week waiting on Wally, who was milking having a broken arm after the fight with the Injustice League. They'd told Zatara and Black Canary that they wanted to do something about Red Tornado, but they'd been shot down. So, now they were taking matters into their own hands.

* * *

Cassius followed the others back onto the Bio-Ship. They'd needed a stupid idea about how to find T.O. Morrow, who they suspected had taken Red Tornado. So, naturally, they turned to Wally, who suggested going to Professor Ivo, who was apparently in Belle Reve. A couple hours later, Megan had failed to get the information with her telepathy, only for Zatanna to use a spell to force Ivo to tell them the exact location of T.O. Morrow's base in Yellowstone National Park, including how to find the entrance. Now, they were on their way there.

"Block out all external communication," Kaldur said as they flew. "Soon, Canary and Zatara, Batman too, I imagine, will know of our...visit with Professor Ivo. We haven't much time."

"Look," Robin said, turning to Zatanna and letting out a short, nervous half-laugh. "I'm trying to be all...nonchalant here..."

"Why? Be as chalant as you like," Zatanna flirted.

Cassius rolled his eyes. Another one. Robin on his own was bad enough, and now she was playing toward his habit to flirt. He glanced at Robin as Robin grinned widely.

"I think we're all just trying to get a handle on your powers," Artemis said, stopping them from flirting further and forgetting about the purpose of the initial attempt at conversation. "Could you...teleport us to Tornado, or Morrow to a cell, or force his bots to surrender?"

"Or create peace on Earth for all time?" Zatanna said, then snorted. "Zatara couldn't even do all that, and I'm nowhere _near_ on my dad's level. I need to know a spell cold, or else have time to prep it. Plus, all magic requires energy, which usually has to come from within. I just can't make the impossible happen at will."

"What's our ETA to Yellowstone?" Connor snapped. "I'm _way_ past ready to stuff Tornado into a trash compactor!"

"Are you so certain he betrayed us?" Kaldur asked.

"Aren't you!?" Connor asked.

"I'm not," Cassius said. "He was most likely hacked."

"I am inclined to agree," Kaldur said. "And even so, that makes him but the victim of his creator's programming. Certainly he deserves the chance to prove that he is more than the _weapon others designed him to be_."

Connor turned back to the front, taking a deep breath and calming himself. Cassius glanced at Rose and Cassandra, both of whom, not having actually known Tornado for long, looked mostly indifferent on the issue.

"Cassius, have you regained use of your goo?" Kaldur asked.

"Some," Cassius said. "However, it's not just that I lost use of it. I lost goo. When I burn, the goo that's burned is gone, so my body heals by more goo replacing it while I slowly regenerate what goo was destroyed. Right now, I'm probably about one third my normal strength using my goo. Given who we'll have to fight, I expect to loose more goo doing this."

"Do not worry about the one that controls fire," Kaldur said. "You focus on Red Tornado and the other. You should be able to deal with both of them well, so long as you are not weakened by fire first, correct?"

"Should," Cassius said. "We'll have to wait and see, though."

Kaldur nodded. "Miss Martian and I will help you. Robin, Kid, Artemis, and Superboy can handle the other."

"Right," Robin nodded.

"Got it," Kid Wally agreed.

"Rose, I want you to help them," Cassius said. "Cassandra, you'll be with us."

Both girls nodded.

"What about me?" Zatanna asked.

"You can go with me-us," Robin caught himself.

"Smooth," Cassius smirked.

"Shut it!" Robin said.

Zatanna smirked, nodding. "Alright. With you it is."

Robin grinned, nodding, and a few minutes later, they reached Yellowstone and all stood, anyone who had a Stealth Mode in their suit activating it. Even Artemis, who had a dark green suit already, had Stealth Tech to turn it black and the lighter green arrow to a light grey. Cassius formed his clothes into his suit, and Cassandra and Rose both pulled their masks on. Zatanna used a spell to change her white pants and purple, spaghetti strap, tank top into a black suit jacket and pants, a yellow vest, a white blouse, and a pair of white gloves, and they all left the Bio-Ship. As they ran, they remained silent, Robin using his gauntlet's holographic screen to scan for Morrow's base.

"Ivo was right," Robin said. "Something's down there."

Just then, a massive, extremely powerful wind kicked up. Cassius attached himself to the ground with his goo as the others were all blown back a short ways. They all looked up, seeing Red Tornado hovering above them. Just as they saw him, he formed a dozen massive, scarlet tornados around them in a semicircle opposite him, trapping them. Cassius formed goo around his forearms and hands, having to also shift his suit from around his forearms into goo. He sighed. He hated having nothing to work with.

"Why, Tornado!?" Megan shouted over the wind. "Why are you doing this!?"

Tornado formed more and more tornados, though Cassius noticed something. They were writing something. He took a moment to read them before his eyes widened slightly.

_"Message received?"_ Megan asked telepathically.

_"Got it,"_ Cassius replied, just as Connor nodded subtly.

"Who care's why!?" Connor shouted. "Let's nail him!"

He charged and Kaldur followed.

"Superboy, maneuver seven!" Kaldur shouted.

Connor spun, clasping his hands.

"No, wait!" Cassius shouted, just as Connor hurled Kaldur at Tornado.

Tornado shot forward instantly, drilling a punch into Kaldur's face and launching him back into Connor. Cassius encased his legs in goo as well and launched himself into the air at Tornado, catching Tornado's punch and flipping, only for Tornado to spin, the cyclone he was hovering atop growing to encase them entirely, obscuring them from any cameras around them, which Cassius suspected several of.

"Erase your message," Cassius warned him before letting go and allowing himself to be sent crashing back into the ground in front of Rose and Cassandra, who both knelt beside him to check on him as he turned his goo back into his suit.

"I'm okay," Cassius said, just as Tornado raised his arms.

Instantly, the tornados around them all began to rage around, completely obliterating the message they'd written earlier, while also forcing everyone to run and dodge around them, keeping them from attacking. Artemis fired a pair of explosive arrows, only for a tornado to catch them and send them right back. She and Robin, who had gotten beside her, both leapt away from the explosion, but were hurled into Zatanna and Rose. Wally began to spin, forming a massive black cyclone of his own, just in time for it to clash with one of Tornado's, both halting. Just then, Tornado spun, catching Megan as she punched at him, hurling her into Wally's tornado, Wally being hit directly by her before Tornado's vortex hurled both into Kaldur and Connor as they were beginning to stand. Cassius and Cassandra both charged, only for Red Tornado to swipe a hand, forming a new tornado directly below them, beginning to hurl them from one tornado to the next for a few minutes before sending them crashing to the ground, Cassandra held protectively in Cassius's arms and Cassius using goo on his back to absorb the impact while allowing it to look real. Zatanna stood, beginning to struggle to chant a spell, likely a shielding spell, only for Red Tornado to fly down and grab her by the throat, choking her for a moment before hurling her back to the others. Once he had, he allowed the extra cyclones to fade, hovering there and watching them all for a moment before a new robot rose behind him on a pillar of stone. This one's metal plating was a darker red, and he had glowing red lines around them. A hollow yellow triangle adorned his chest with a yellow dot in the center, and a smaller yellow triangle adorned his forehead.

"Quite a performance, Tornado, but we both know that's all it was," the new robot said. "I have all your memories, Tornado, plus a next-gen processor. I know all your moves before you do." Suddenly, he spread his arms and a massive chunk of the ground behind his pillar broke free, then flew over him at them all. "Blowing a message into the sand?"

Cassius slipped out from under Cassandra instantly and encased his entire body in goo, launching himself up into the boulder and punching it, shattering it before sending out a strand of goo for all of the larger chunks, then shouting in effort, hurling the stones back at the new threat. He huffed, swiping a hand, and a barrage of stones exploded from the ground before him, smashing against the ones Cassius had hurled. Cassius flipped, sending his right arm out at the robot, only for him to lean out of the way of the strike, swiping an arm and sending a boulder crashing into Cassius's gut.

_"Red Tornado's getting away!"_ Zatanna said through their telepathic link as Cassius crashed to the ground.

_"Is he abandoning us?"_ Artemis asked.

_"I don't believe that!" _Megan said.

_"He's probably going to deal with whatever plan Morrow has,"_ Cassius said as Wally shot up the pillar.

"You stand no chance against me, humans," the new robot said, punching Wally and hurling him away.

"We're not human!" Megan and Connor both shouted as they charged.

_"He knows every move Red Tornado ever saw us use, or taught us,"_ Cassius said.

"Apologies," the robot said, raising his arms and sending a pair of stone pillars erupting out of the ground at an angle just in time for them to crash together around the pair. "I suppose the properly inclusive term is..." he paused as Connor and Megan began to fall, "meat bags."

_"Cassandra, Rose, and I will handle him next,"_ Cassius said. _"Robin, Artemis, Zatanna, distract him, and block his sight if you can."_

_"Give us a challenge at least,"_ Robin said, pulling out several explosive disks and smoke bombs.

_"Yeah, what's with this 'if you can' crap?"_ Artemis smirked, nocking several explosive arrows.

_"Are you looking down on us because we aren't trained assassins?"_ Zatanna asked.

_"Well, we _are_ allowed to fight to kill this time,"_ Cassius said. "Go."

Robin hurled half of his disks as Artemis fired her arrows. Then, as she nocked more, Zatanna began to chant. As expected, the robot formed a rock wall in front of himself to block the attack, and when the explosion went off, it filled the air with a massive cloud of smoke and dust. Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose were off instantly, the second wave of explosive disks, arrows, and Zatanna's spell, a massive fireball, blasting a second wall of stone and further obscuring the robot's sight. Then, Zatanna used a second to encase the robot's eyes in a stone blindfold.

"Tornado never knew _my_ moves," Zatanna said.

"And I bet you've got some good ones," Robin grinned, Zatanna raising an eyebrow at him. "Whoa. Sorry. That may have come off a little too Wally."

"I don't mind," Zatanna flirted.

_"Get a room,"_ Cassius said, sprinting up the stone pillar behind the robot silently using his goo.

Just then, the robot leaned back, a pair of red beams of energy blasting through the blindfold, shattering it, and a volcano in the distance behind him erupted, sending lava exploding hundreds of feet into the air, surrounded by a cloud of volcanic ash that was lit up bridge orange by the lava. Then, Cassandra hurled several of her batarangs, stabbing them into the robot from behind, all of them exploding. He staggered forward only one step before Cassius leapt into the air behind him, his arms below mid-bicep being transformed into a pair of extended whips ending in a massive morning star the size of his torso and each spike the length of his forearm. The morning star whipped down into the robot's back, the top of the tower exploding in the impact and the spikes impaling him several times over. Then, as Cassius retracted his goo to around his hands and forearms, he flipped, his left hand deflecting a stone down into the robot, the impact launching it to the ground off to the side. A moment later, Rose's swords crashed into his back, sending him staggering forward into Kaldur and Connor's fists. He crashed into the base of his pillar, then dove out of the way of Cassius's fist, allowing him to explode into the ground.

As the robot stood, Zatanna sent another fireball spell exploding into the robot, sending him crashing along the ground toward where the lava was approaching. The robot flipped, feet skidding along the ground to a stop just before Cassandra reached him, crouched low. As she'd planned, the robot threw a knee at her and she blocked it and flipped, pushing off of it as she had Cassius's knee earlier. Then, just as she grabbed his jaw, Cassius, now in goo form and wrapped around her torso, spread down her arms to her hands, multiplying her strength in time for her to flip, using the added strength to execute the same throw she'd beaten Cassius with, sending the robot crashing down into the lava, which engulfed him instantly.

"Nice!" Robin cheered as Cassius reformed beside Cassandra, grabbing her and leaping away from the lava before he could burn.

Just as he did, the robot began to slowly rise on another pillar of stone, only for the water-controlling robot to arrive, sending several blasts of water exploding down on him, blasting him back into the lava. He climbed up onto the side of the pillar, only for Red Tornado to explode through it, dropping him in again. Then, as he stood, waist-deep in lava, the female robot that controlled fire began to hurl fireballs into him, blasting him over and over. She charged, but the robot caught her hands.

"Sister, brothers, stop!" he shouted, only for the cater-controlling one to crash into him as well, the pair dragging him down into the lava.

However, just as Tornado moved to help them, both leapt back out of the lava, the male using water to cool their bodies before they could melt.

"What happened?" Tornado asked.

"The hole in his body allowed the lava to melt his internal components," the female said. "Only his plating was able to withstand it for a prolonged period."

Just then, the ground lurched and the volcano began to rumble loudly.

"Tornado, listen!" Wally said, turning to the three robots. "We're on the verge of a stage three super-volcano eruption! There's no turning back from that! We need to vent pressure fast! The ash cloud will brink on a world-wide nuclear winter unless you divert it!"

Tornado nodded.

"Triangulate around the pressure locus!" Wally said to Robin.

"Right!" Robin nodded, quickly using his gauntlet to mark three spots.

Artemis fired an arrow instantly, which split into three rockets, blasting all three points. Instantly, an explosion of gas and volcanic ash burst out of it, billowing into the sky as Tornado shot up into the cloud, forming a massive tornado which began to suck up the ash, venting it into space. As he did, the water-controlling robot began to cool the lava with water, quickly calming the volcano.

"Yes!" Wally cheered as Red Tornado landed off to the side with the other two.

The three androids led them to Morrow's hideout where Robin turned on Tornado's voice box again.

"There," Robin said. "That should do it."

"Yes," Tornado said. "I can speak again.

"You were willing to sacrifice yourself to save the planet," Kaldur said.

"The planet would have survived," Tornado said. "It is Humanity that was saved. Though not by me. It is thanks to my sister and brother, as well as all of you, that were the true heroes this day."

"Don't look at us," Robin said. "The holes in his torso were made by Cassius, and Cassandra's the one who used a badass move to throw him into the lava."

"And then your family forced him back in long enough for him to be stopped," Kaldur said.

"You could have stopped him without us," the male android said. "We do not deserve the credit for this victory. We merely stole it from you."

"Not true," Cassius said. "We didn't have any way of keeping him in that lava without someone sacrificing themselves. You two stopped that from happening, making you two the heroes. What are your names, anyway?"

"I am Red Torpedo," the male said.

"I am Red Inferno," the female said. "Also, I apologize for nearly killing you."

"As do I," Torpedo said.

"My point was not that you were the hero, today," Kaldur said. "My point is this. You were never the mole. Never a traitor."

"No," Tornado agreed. "I left to protect you from further attack, and to find my creator, Morrow."

"Cool!" Wally said suddenly, picking up a spare hand for the android they'd destroyed from a table off to the side. "Souvenir."

"Why'd you volunteer to become our den mother in the first place?" Connor asked.

"I was the pragmatic choice," Tornado said. "I do not require sleep, I have no secret identity or second life to live."

"But you _do_ have advanced AI programming designed to learn, adapt, evolve!" Wally said, uncurling one of the hand's fingers with each of the last three words.

"Hello Megan!" Megan said, thumping her forehead before smiling. "You wanted to become more human."

"And you couldn't do that with the League," Artemis said, then snorted. "They're stiffs."

"You're sure not going to learn emotion from Batman," Robin said. "Trust me."

"Ain't that the fucking truth," Cassius grumbled. "I do _not_ want to go back after this."

"Then the cave was not a proving ground only for us," Kaldur said. "But for you as well."

"I do not know if these statements are accurate, but perhaps they are true," Tornado said. "And if I understand the term correctly, I believe I have come to...care about you all."

"See?" Connor asked, not a hint of emotion on his face. "Practically a meat bag already."

"Which reminds me," Tornado said. "I must go and see my father. I know where he is, now. I wish to speak with him."

"Alright," Kaldur nodded. "We will head back to the Cave."

"We have a _massive_ ass chewing to receive," Cassius said, the others all grimacing. "What about you two?"

Torpedo and Inferno looked at each other, then back at him.

"We will go with our brother," Inferno said. "Then...we will see."

Cassius nodded and everyone walked outside. Megan called the Bio-Ship over and everyone who was going to the Cave got on before Megan took off, setting a course for the Cave.

"So, good kidnapping?" Robin asked Zatanna.

"Actually, yeah," Zatanna smiled. "Best ever."

"First of many, I hope," Robin said.

"If my dad doesn't ground me for life," Zatanna said.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Cassius said.

Zatanna nodded and everyone fell silent as they flew. Then, once they were back, Zatara and Black Canary chewed them out, then Batman called to chew them out, then ordered those under his charge back to the Batcave to be chewed out further, then punished. Cassius sighed, waving farewell to the rest of the Team before the four of them took the Zeta tube back to the Batcave.

* * *

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	27. Chapter 27

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Worst Case

Cassius gasped and panted as he ran, stumbling now and then. Batman was a slave driver. He had to be. Ever since they had stopped Red Volcano, as the android they'd destroyed had apparently been called, Batman had been working the four of them to the bone. Dozens of miles of running per day, hours upon hours of strength training a day, hours of sparring a day, exclusively against Batman who never seemed to run out of energy, and hours upon hours of Cassandra learning to read and write with both Alfred and Cassius while Alfred also taught the girls what they would be learning in school. They were allowed exactly eight hours of sleep a night, and Batman had them all on a strict diet at scheduled times. They had zero free time. Ever. That had been their life for the last ten days, only Robin getting any freedom from it, and that only to go to school. But Rose, Cassandra, and Cassius were trapped with Batman all day every day, as he had been staying there to train them and using the computer to communicate with the League, and that only when necessary.

Finally, Cassius's heart jumped for joy when Batman called an end to their run early, about two in the afternoon on a Saturday, and ordered them to gather in their costumes at the computer. Everyone that needed to change did so, and Cassius shifted his clothes into his before they gathered at the computer.

"Something's come up," Batman said. "Head to the Cave and stand by."

They all agreed, no one questioning it since this would give them a break from his torture. A few minutes later, the Zeta tube fired up and they were free for a little while.

* * *

Cassius covered his mouth, eyes wide as they watched the Cave's screens. It was unreal. It couldn't be happening. The Justice League's biggest guns, minus Wonder Woman, had gone to space to react to an unidentified alien ship passing the moon sometime around four pm. The two Green Lanterns had ordered them to power down the ship, and instead it had blasted them with a laser that broke through their rings' barriers, then incinerated them. Then, Batman's space ship had deployed Superman, Martian Manhunter, Shazam, and Captain Atom, only for all four to be likewise vaporized. Batman had managed to take an escape pod before his ship was blasted, only for the massive alien ship to deploy a small army of fighters, each roughly as big as a large house and shaped sort of like a ball with a pair of arms on the bottom of the front and a scorpion tail, and one of them had flown up in front of Batman's much smaller escape pod and blasted him with a weapon identical to what the mothership had used, killing him as well.

"Tornado," Zatara said, appearing on another screen as the screen displaying the short slaughter, courtesy of a pair of cameras Batman had deployed before it, closed. "Did you-"

"Yes, Zatara," Tornado confirmed. "We saw. Celestial defenses have failed. Initiate all terrestrial measures."

"Affirmative," Zatara said, his screen winking out.

"I must join the League," Tornado said. "We will protect the planet at all costs, but should we fail, the responsibility falls to you."

"We stand ready," Kaldur said.

Tornado nodded and left. Kaldur stepped forward, beginning to monitor the news stations as the attacks began. As he did, Cassius turned to Cassandra and knelt, able to see the fear in her eyes.

"It's going to be okay," Cassius promised.

"I'll have to kill them, won't I?" Cassandra signed.

Cassius nodded. "If we have to fight them, yes. You'll have to kill them. They won't leave you a choice."

Cassandra nodded. "I'll do my best."

Cassius nodded, smiling. "I know you will. Both of you will. Rose, go ahead and swap your rubber bullets out for live ammo now."

Rose nodded and left for her room quickly. As she did, Cassandra stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Cassius, who hugged her back.

"Scare," Cassandra said.

"I know," Cassius said. "But it's going to be alright."

Cassandra nodded, pulling back and allowing Cassius to stand, looking back at the monitors. On one, Flash and Zatanna were blasted while trying to rescue a group of civilians from a burning building's roof. Wally clenched his fists but remained silent. A moment later, that news station switched to Taipei, where the League was reported to be doing better. Except, just as the feed started, both Hawkwoman and Hawkman were killed. Black Canary and Green Arrow both took out a group of ships, only to be blasted a moment later. Cassius clenched his fists as Artemis covered her mouth. The reporter listed off several other members, both among the space group and not, that were reported as either dead or missing, including Aquaman, which made Kaldur's fists clench.

On another feed, it wasn't just the Justice League fighting. Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose all looked that one as Red Torpedo and Red Inferno, both of whom had been accepted into the Justice league, were fighting alongside Lady Shiva, Deathstroke, Alpha, Black Spider, and a number of other League of Shadows big hitters. As they watched, Torpedo was blasted. Then Black Spider. Then, Alpha. Inferno went down shielding Lady Shiva, who shoved Deathstroke out of the way a moment later. More and more began to go down until it was only Deathstroke, completely surrounded. He sighed, lowering his empty Desert Eagles.

"I suppose this is my punishment for how I treated you, isn't it, Rose?" Deathstroke asked aloud, just before all of the ships blasted him.

Rose, having just returned from loading live ammo into her guns and stocking up on spare mags, broke down instantly. Cassius pulled her into a hug, Cassandra joining them a moment later to help comfort her. On another screen, Wonder Woman was blasted by the Mother Ship as it arrived and Tornado flew out of its way as it crashed down on Smallville, Superman's home town, completely crushing it and everyone in it. Tornado began to fly around and launch tornado after tornado at the fighters suddenly flooding from the mother ship.

"Red Tornado to Cave," Tornado said as all of the other screens closed. "I fear I am all that remains of the League."

"RT-" Robin went silent as Tornado was blasted.

"We are Earth's heroes now," Kaldur said after a moment of silence.

"So what are we waiting for?" Connor asked. "A theme song?"

"A strategy," Kaldur said. "Earth's weapons are ineffective. And it has been made tragically clear a direct attack will not succeed."

"Nukes might work," Cassius said, just as a screen came on, showing a nuclear explosion over a Russian city, only for the alien ships to fly out of the mushroom cloud a moment later.

"No dice," Robin said. "Russia tried it."

"It did nothing?" Cassius breathed, shaking his head. "This is insane."

"Exactly why we need a plan," Kaldur said.

"Checking satellite imagery," Robin said, pulling up a holographic globe with red spots to show the aliens. "Here's where the aliens are now."

Most of the spots were massive, like an image of a hurricane on a map. However, one spot was only a small dot.

"This one get lost?" Connor asked, pointing to it.

Robin zoomed in on it. "It's Superman's Fortress of Solitude!"

"Superman has a Fortress of Solitude?" Connor asked.

"It's power source must have attracted the aliens' attention," Robin said. "At least enough to send a scout ship to investigate."

"That, or that's what they were after, and they're either wiping out the planet just for shits and giggles, or to hide their true purpose for being here," Cassius suggested.

"Must be some fortress," Connor said, turning to walk away.

"Connor," Megan said sympathetically, catching his arm.

"No, it's okay," Connor said. "I guess there's a lot about Superman I'll never know, uh, ya know...now."

"We will target this lone ship," Kaldur said.

"Yeah, break it down, build more!" Wally said. "Hit those ugly aliens with their own mojo!"

Artemis elbowed him hard.

"Ow!" Wally said.

"Martian and Kryptonian in the house," Artemis reminded him.

Both were staring at Wally blankly.

Wally laughed nervously. "Not that all aliens are automatically ugly."

"There's a better idea than breaking it down," Cassius said, saving Wally from embarrassing himself further.

"And that is?" Connor asked.

"We steal it," Cassius said. "Take it back to the mother ship in order to get inside without having to fight our way through their entire fleet. If we destroy the mothership, the res will likely be in chaos. They may even retreat."

"Agreed," Kaldur said. "Infiltrating using the ship is the best plan, assuming that we can capture the ship without them alerting the mothership to our theft."

"That's a pretty big if, considering we have no way of knowing what they're capable of," Wally said.

"We also don't know what they actually look like," Cassius pointed out. "For all we've seen, the small ships might actually be drones."

"We will deal with that problem as it arises," Kaldur said. "For now, we will operate under the assumption that we mean to steal the ship and infiltrate the Mothership with it."

The others all nodded and they all headed toward the hangar. However, as they left the Cave, Cassius spoke up.

"Kaldur, would you mind if we made a stop before we go after the ship?" Cassius asked. "I'll make it quick."

Kaldur glanced at him. "You want to see them one more time?"

"I just want to say goodbye," Cassius said. "Just in case."

"Very well," Kaldur nodded. "As long as you keep it brief. M'gann, do you know where to go?"

Megan nodded, turning the Bio-Ship.

"We don't have time to stop and visit with friends!" Robin said.

"Yeah!" Wally snapped. "We have to save the world!"

"They're not my friends," Cassius said. "They're my wife and children."

Everyone but Kaldur and Megan stared at him in shock.

"You're married!?" Robin gaped.

"How did we not know about this!?" Wally asked.

"How did you keep them safe from the Shadows?" Artemis asked.

"You'll see," Cassius said.

After a few minutes of Cassius remaining silent and refusing to answer any questions, Megan landed the cloaked Bio-Ship outside of town and they all walked outside, Cassius shifting into his former appearance. Everyone that hadn't seen it yet stared at him again.

"You look...really familiar," Robin said.

"This is what I looked like before the Shadows, but that was before your time," Cassius said, skipping the flower shop and instead walking directly to the grave, everyone staring at it in silence, understanding dawning on those that hadn't been before. "Hey guys. I might not be back here again. I have to go to work, so I can't stay long, but this is a big job, so...I might be seeing you guys again soon." He closed his eyes, praying to God, something he'd always thought was stupid, for the Team's safety during the mission, and for Cassandra and Rose to make it through safely.

"Wait, that's..." Robin trailed off, staring first at the names on the grave, then at Cassius, eyes widening slowly. "Oh my God! No way! _You're HIM_!?"

"Who?" Cassius asked, standing and turning to him.

"That's...that's _your_ wife?" Robin asked. "You're sure of that?"

"Yes," Cassius nodded. "Why?"

"Holy shit!" Wally gaped. "There's no way! I mean, he died decades ago! There's no way!"

"Dude, how old is Void?" Robin asked. "Think about it! He disappeared two years before his wife and kids were murdered. Cassius woke up and became Void two years before he did his first job. After he'd woken up he realized he could _modify his body_ into anyone he chose, but as a result of losing his memory, he had no idea who he was originally! It all makes sense!"

"Who the fuck are you talking about?" Cassius snapped.

"Your true identity," Kaldur said. "Your past life. You were a hero."

"Yeah, no shit," Cassius said, rolling his eyes. "_I_ told _you_ that, remember?"

"No, Void, he means you were _the_ hero!" Robin said. "Even _Batman_ looked up to you."

"Gesundheit," Cassius said.

"I mean it!" Robin said.

"Dude!" Wally said. "You were Copycat!"

Artemis and Megan both gasped, eyes widening.

"Who the fuck is Copycat?" Cassius asked.

"One of the best heroes a few decades ago," Robin said. "You were a thorn in the league of Shadows' side for years! You used to fight _groups_ of their heavy hitters _and win_! And your superpower was Body Modification. You could turn your body into literally anything. Even a different species' body."

Cassius frowned, before his eyes widened slowly. "You mean...like a Kryptonian's?"

"Exactly," Robin said. "You could turn yourself into a Kryptonian and gain all of their powers and weaknesses. Or you could become a Martian and gain all of their powers and weaknesses. Or you could make parts of your body metal, or diamond, or water."

"Or goo," Cassius breathed.

"Bingo," Robin said.

"You lost me," Wally said.

"Really?" Robin asked. "Think about it! His body's able to become literally anything, so maybe, once the League of Assassins finally captured him, they put him in some type of black goo that was supposed to somehow enhance, copy, or maybe steal his powers. But the goo was harmful, so in order to not be harmed, he turned his body _into _that goo! It can't harm itself, right?"

"But then something went wrong," Cassius continued. "For whatever reason, my power malfunctioned, or got corrupted, and now it's combined with the goo, creating the power I have now."

"And more than that," Robin said. "I think there's a reason you have more than one body's worth of goo. When you became living goo, the goo they put you in became a part of you! You absorbed it!"

"But, wait, if he was so awesome, how did the League even beat him in the first place?" Artemis asked.

"Because they cheated," Cassius said, a dream he'd had a few weeks ago, then had forgotten returning. "When Lady Shiva and Cain were sent to kill me, they used a type of colorless, odorless poisonous gas that they'd already been inoculated against to weaken me. By the time we actually fought, I was already dying. After the fight, Cain left me for dead and Lady Shiva volunteered to get rid of my body, except, she gave me the antidote instead, then took me to the island."

"You remember?" Robin asked.

"I...had a dream about it," Cassius said. "I forgot about the dream."

"So, you really _were_ this awesome hero?" Artemis asked.

"I don't know," Cassius said. "Maybe?"

"You were," Robin said. "You were one of the best. Superman actually adopted your philosophy on the job. Your core belief was that no price is to high to do the right thing."

"What, so he'd be the person to sacrifice one town to save the world?" Wally asked.

"No, I'd just save both," Cassius said, then blinked, recoiling like he'd been slapped. "What the fuck just came out of my mouth?"

"He lives," Robin said. "Copycat's still inside of you."

"I think I just threw up a little bit," Cassius said, then sucked in a pained breath, falling to his knees and clutching at his head as agony seared through it, images flooding his mind.

Memories. Fights. Time spent with his family. It was all there. He felt his eyes burn as tears began to fall, but he took a deep breath, shoving the memories down. He couldn't. He couldn't do this now. He couldn't deal with this.

"Cassius, are you okay?" Rose asked worriedly.

"Say something!" Megan said.

"I...I can't..." he shook his head. "I can't deal with this right now. We have a mission to complete."

"He is right," Kaldur said. "We have delayed too long as it is. We must go. Now."

They all nodded and ran back to the Bio-Ship, strapping in before Megan took off, Cassius returning to his normal appearance, including his suit and mask, then closed his eyes, struggling to continue holding the memories at bay.

* * *

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	28. Chapter 28

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Failing

Cassius's eyes widened as the cannon, which they'd decided to remove for safety, sparked. Megan had ripped off the communications device Robin had identified, which had also made the propulsion system fail. Then Artemis had sealed the aliens inside with a foam arrow. Once that was done, Megan had broken the outer shell of the cannon's mount to weaken it for Superboy to rip off, however, several small red spots along the front of the tail were beginning to light up and glow. Then, just before the building up energy discharged, Wolf tackled Superboy out of the way, being blasted in his place and incinerated.

"Wolf," Megan breathed.

"There was no indication of feedback," Robin said. "I'm sorry."

"Nothing we can do for him now," Superboy said.

Cassius stretched his goo arms up and yanked upward, ripping the cannon off. He handed it to Superboy, who jumped onto the Bio-Ship for Megan to connect the cannon to it, also as they'd agree on. Cassius would take the shuttle after transforming himself into one of the aliens and hiding Cassandra inside of himself like a goo shell, something he'd never tried but which should, theoretically, be possible. Then, Megan would pretend to pursue the ship to the mother ship before breaking off and escaping a fight, allowing Cassius and Cassandra to enter the Mothership while the rest of the ships chased them. Then it would be up to Cassius and Cassandra to take out the mother ship, either on their own, or find a way to get everyone else onboard.

_"Rerouting systems to integrate the weapon's systems into the Bio-Ship's,"_ Megan said telepathically. _"I'll have to de-camouflage for a few minutes."_

_"We may not have a few minutes,"_ Robin said, just as two more fighters passed over them as the ship turned visible.

"Everyone get ready!" Cassius said as the ships began to swing around to attack.

_"Miss Martian, open fire!"_ Kaldur ordered.

_"Can't!"_ Megan said. _"Weapon systems are offline to incorporate the new cannon! And that's not fully integrated yet either!"_

"I _am_ the fucking weapon systems!" Cassius snarled. "Superboy, fling me!"

He jumped, transforming into a spear, and Superboy caught him and hurled him. About halfway there, Cassius split into a dozen spears. Both cannons fired, each blasting two spears. Then, the rest exploded through the ships, one hitting each communication device, then stabbed into the snow before transforming into normal goo and reforming into Cassius. As he reformed, the two ships crashed, one landing on the one they'd disabled before and exploding into a fireball, and the other bouncing and rolling across the snow for a ways. Cassius dropped to the ground, groaning and holding a hand to his head as it throbbed. He'd lost more goo than he had expected from that. And it had hurt.

"Are you okay?" Rose asked as she and Cassandra knelt beside him.

"I just need a couple hours to get that goo back," Cassius said. "I'm still good for the mission."

He looked up just as the surviving ship's cannons swung around toward Artemis, beginning to glow.

_"Artemis, behind you!"_ Megan warned.

Artemis spun just as Cassandra moved to tackle her, but it was too late. Both were hit by the beam and vaporized. Cassius's entire body went numb just as he was starting to regain his feet and he fell to his knees again, staring at the spot they'd been, tears rolling down his face. it couldn't be. It couldn't.

"Cassius!" Rose said, sounding like she was close to crying as well. "We need to go!"

He looked around. Kaldur was just destroying the ship using water spikes, but the others were all stunned.

"They're dead!" Wally snarled. "Every single alien! If it's the last thing I do!"

"Right behind you," Cassius said, standing as his shock finally broke and fury and bloodlust rushed through him. "I'm going to slaughter every last one of them! I'll rip them all apart!"

They all got on the Bio-Ship and took off. As they flew, Megan was struggling not to cry and Wally was shouting in anger, slamming his hands into the dashboard in front of him. Cassius was seated in lotus position on the floor, his goo attaching him to the floor and his eyes closed, the pain and his anger mixing and rolling off of him in waves that everyone could feel. He was silent, murder was painted across his face, and his hands were clenched so hard his palms were bleeding. Rose sat beside him, resting her head on his left shoulder, and he wrapped an arm around her, allowing his palm to heal before setting his hand on her left upper arm.

"I'll make them pay!" he snarled quietly.

"I want to make them pay too, but I don't want to lose you," Rose said. "Please. I don't want you to die."

"I'm not going anywhere," he said, forcing himself to calm down for the moment and pulling her into his arms. "I'm not going to leave you, or let you be hurt."

Rose curled into him, holding him tightly.

"There will be time to mourn later," Aqualad said finally, standing. "Now we have a job to do. Defend the Earth, and ensure Artemis and Cassandra's sacrifice was not in vain."

"Back to the Cave?" Megan asked.

"The Hall of Justice," Kaldur said. "The Human Race must know that there are still heroes defending them. There is still hope."

They all fell silent, and time ticked past as they flew. Hours. Cassius's rage served him better than he'd hoped. His goo reformed faster, and by the time they reached their destination, he'd recovered to almost half his strength. He stood as they arrived, finding the American military fighting against three ships ineffectively. Just as the ships blasted three tanks, Megan flew over them, opening Cassius a hole.

"Stay here!" he snarled to Rose, then dropped out, swiping his hands.

A barrage of goo spikes rained down on them, blasting all three into a cloud of debris instantly before the goo returned to Cassius and formed him a set of wings. Megan landed the Bio-Ship in front of the military, the back opening to reveal the others as Cassius landed beside it, his wings folding up on his back, compressing into a more draconic shape than usual, giving him a more intimidating, monstrous appearance. The military began to cheer instantly as the others all walked over to join Cassius.

"Look, it's Superman!" one of them said. "Told ya he wouldn't leave us out here alone!"

"I don't know," the soldier next to him said. "He looks kinda young. And where's the cape?"

"I'm not Superman," Connor said.

"I don't know who you are, son," a four-star general said walking over to them, "and right now, I don't care. You wear the "S" and you and your friends got the job done."

Cassius rolled his eyes. Typical humans. Give the credit to the most recognizeable one. Not that he cared. He just wanted to kill them all. Superboy could have the glory.

"I'm not Superman," Connor said, sounding less angry and more disappointed than before.

"Tell that to the enemy," the general said, then turned to Kaldur and saluted. "General Wade Eiling! US Airforce!"

"Aqualad, Justice League," Kaldur replied. "We'll help you salvage as many of the aliens' cannons as possible. Then we start taking back what is ours!"

The general nodded, and the team all walked into the Hall of Justice together, looking around at the destroyed statues.

"They're really gone," Robin said.

Megan flew over to her uncle's statue before beginning to weep. Cassius clenched his fists as he felt sorrow begin to well up inside of him again, forcing it back down and forcing it to turn to rage once again. However, just as he did, Megan suddenly leapt away from the statue, then hurled it to the side. Martian Manhunter sat up from below it, looking around in confusion and holding a hand to his head.

"Uncle J'onn!" Megan cried happily.

She flew forward, but Kaldur stepped in between them, stopping her.

_"M'gann, check his mind!"_ Kaldur ordered. _"Make sure he is who he appears to be."_

_"It's him!"_ Megan said. _"He's real! And he's alive!"_

"But we saw you get disintegrated!" Connor said. "You _and_ Superman! And everyone!"

"Yes," Manhunter said as Megan helped him stand. "I remember. But...I cannot remember how I survived, or...how I arrived here." He looked down at Megan, who simply smiled.

"Maybe you were density shifting and the beam passed right through you," Megan suggested.

"Scrambling your brains along the way!" Robin added.

"My mind _is_ clouded," Manhunter said, pressing a hand to his head again. "I feel certain I had something important to tell you."

_"Hello Wally!"_ Wally said, thumping himself in the head. _"Come on!"_

He ran back out to the ship and Robin, Rose, and Cassius followed. He had Robin scan the beam to see how it worked, and what type of energy it was.

_"I knew it, look!"_ Wally said. _"It's giving off Zeta beams, the same stuff that powers our Zeta tubes! This thing doesn't disintegrate! It teleports! Artemis is alive!"_

_"Maybe, but-" _Robin began.

_"No maybes!"_ Wally interrupted him. _"They're _all_ alive!"_

"That must have been what you wanted to tell us!" Megan gasped.

_"No!" _Cassius snapped, silencing everyone as his rage flooded the connection for a moment before he calmed himself. _"It's not a teleporter, Wally! It's a disintegrator! I got hit with them! Parts of me were disintegrated too! Artemis is _gone_! _Cassandra_ is gone! _Everyone_ is _GONE_! ! !"_

Just then, more ships began to fly overhead. Cassius snarled angrily instantly, spreading his wings.

_"And now, I'm going to make _them_ gone!"_ Cassius snarled, exploding into the air, a pair of enormous goo blades forming from his hands and forearms.

He slashed two of the ships, destroying both, as Kaldur reported they were on the way.

_"Negative, we can't win this!"_ Robin said. _"Cassius, fall back! Miss Martian, camo the Bio-Ship and-"_

The ship too a hit and was gone. Megan and Manhunter both shouted in pain, collapsing. Cassius roared in pain and spun, sending a hail of goo spikes in every direction before beating his wings hard, streaking into the air just in time to avoid a blast, which hit another ship instead. Then he rolled, slashing several more ships.

_"We're falling back!"_ Robin said. _"Cassius, retreat now!__"_

Cassius ignored him, exploding straight through a ship. As he did, one flew down behind him, only for a rocket to explode into its underside. Rose dropped the rocket tube and grabbed a sniper rifle, firing before even getting it set up, and a ship's propulsion system exploded, sending it crashing to the ground. Cassius grabbed a ship with a pair of goo hands and ripped it in half, hurling the two pieces into two more ships, his entire body now transformed into a goo humanoid.

He dropped, exploding down on a ship as it passed over him and taking it to the ground, leaping off of it before it could explode. As he landed, however, Rose shrieked suddenly. He spun, but she was fine.

"Move!" Rose shrieked as she neared him. "You have to move!"

Cassius looked around, seeing nothing. Then, Rose crashed into him, hurling him away just as a ship above them flipped around with no warning, firing and hitting Rose, rather than Cassius, who had been there a moment before. Cassius's eyes widened as the beam faded. The other ships began to sweep down toward him, but his rage finally boiled over. With a deafening, monstrous roar, his body exploded, a mass of writhing goo tentacles lashing out over and over at the ships, smashing them and sweeping them out of the sky. Several fired, disintegrating sections of his body, but he didn't stop. All of the goo spikes he'd fired, and any tentacles he lost he reclaimed and reformed. Then, finally, he as the ships pulled away to swing around for another pass, he reformed his body inside of the Hall of Justice, sprinting to the Zeta Tube just in time for Manhunter to override the computer and grant him access. Then, he stepped into the tube just as the front wall exploded.

* * *

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	29. Chapter 29

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Kamikaze

Cassius's hands clenched and unclenched over and over, the goo encasing his body writhing across his skin agitatedly. Aqualad had sacrificed himself to get Manhunter through the teleporter. Now, they were going to attack the Mothership the hard way, and Cassius was the sacrificial decoy. That was fine with him. Cassandra and Rose were both gone. He'd failed to protect them. So a kamikaze strike to make the aliens pay was just fine with him.

_"Are you sure about this?"_ Megan asked telepathically as they flew toward the mothership.

_"I will slaughter every fucking one of them!"_ Cassius snarled back, sensing her fear in reaction to the amount of hate, bloodlust, and rage flooding off of him.

Even in his head, his voice sounded like that of a monster. But that was fine. A monster was exactly what he was, and exactly what they needed.

"We'll see you on the inside if you get blasted, Cassius," Wally said, still clinging desperately to his belief that Artemis was alive.

"I told you," Cassius snarled, voice deep, rumbling, and feral. "It's not a _fucking teleporter_!"

Wally fell silent and Cassius glared around at the others. They'd brought in everyone. Every hero who wasn't in the Justice league or the Team. Red Arrow. Zatanna. A new hero named Rocket. Two of Kaldur's friends named Tula and Garth. Even some surviving Shadows who were going to fight alongside Cassius. After a few minutes, they were in position. Megan and Manhunter had infiltrated the Mothership using their invisibility and Manhunter's Density Shifting, Cassius and his handful of Shadows were ready to fight, and the others were ready to infiltrate on command. Finally, Robin gave Cassius the go ahead.

The attack started perfectly. Cassius, as a mass of writhing tentacles again, hurled a small hill's with of rocks and debris at the mothership, smashing guns all across its hull. Then, as he shifted to avoid the initial volley, Clayface hurled more boulders, Professor Ojo sent a red beam of energy tearing along the side of the ship, Cheshire fired a pair of rockets that separated into a dozen smaller rockets each, in addition to the initial ones, Sportsmaster hurled several explosive discuses, and an explosives expert named Detonator fired to rocket launchers each with four rockets, each of which spit like Cheshire's. Massive explosions bloomed across the ship's hull before everyone scattered to avoid the returning fire. Then, fighters began to emerge. And then, fighters began to explode. Cassius shot through the air as a massive, winged, goo humanoid with enormous claws, and a thick, morning-star-tipped tail, smashing anything he could reach. Detonator seemed to have no shortage of rockets, stashed around the landscape. Clayface was hurling boulders in a continuous stream, and Professor Ojo was firing rapidly. The others were all doing well also, but Cassius had long-since stopped paying attention to them. They weren't his concern. They weren't his mission.

He flipped, grabbing a ship, then finished his flip and sent the ship spinning and flipping through the air before it exploded into one of the ship's guns. A pair of ships fired at him, but he flipped over the blasts, beating his wings to reach one of the two as the blasts cancelled out. Then, he kicked it, sending it crashing into the other ship, both bouncing away. The one he'd kicked exploded into another gun and the other exploded into Clayface, blasting him into a spray of mud. Cassius turned, waving a hand and scattering a spray of goo spikes into the ships flying around him and the mother ship, blasting several ships just as three began a gun run of the trees where Cheshire, Sportsmaster, and Detonator were running around shooting, managing to blast all three. Cassius ripped a gun off of the ship, keeping its power cables attached as he blasted three ships and two guns, then ripped it off the ship entirely and leapt into the open air, smashing the gun into a ship, the resulting ball of fire crashing down on Professor Ojo. And suddenly, Cassius was avoiding blasts more than fighting.

_"Void, we're setting bombs on the Mother Ship's power core!"_ Megan warned suddenly. _"You were right! There are no prisoners! Connor...Connor's gone. We're on our way out!"_

_"Take your time!"_ Cassius snarled. _"I'm still having fun!"_

He clapped his massively expanded hands just in time to catch two ships between them, though the resulting fireball burned his hands to ash. He reformed more from the goo forming his tail, taking off into the ships again. He punched one, sending it exploding down into another. He turned and caught one by the arm as it was flying past, then spun and smashed it against another that tried to pass. Then, he flew to the wall of the Mothership, crouching against the wall to jump off. Just as he did, the hull under him exploded, flames engulfing him and agony searing through his body, his shriek of agony echoing across their telepathic connection until every ship remaining blasted him at once, and everything ceased.

* * *

Cassius groaned as he felt feeling starting to return. He frowned. He shouldn't be feeling anything. He had been caught in an explosion. And he'd been incinerated. He was dead. So how was he feeling?

"Cassius!" Cassandra's voice said as he felt himself being shaken. "Cassius!"

His eyes slowly dragged themselves open, his vision blurred for a moment before sharpening, allowing him to see both her and Rose standing over him, backdropped by the ceiling of the Cave. He frowned, pushing himself into a sitting position before both flung their arms around him. He hugged them both back tightly, relief flooding him despite his confusion. He held them both tight against himself as his body shook with silent sobs.

"We're okay," Rose said. "We're all okay. None of it was real."

"I thought I'd lost you," Cassius said, voice raspy and quiet.

"Cassius," Cassandra sniffed, her voice as frail as his.

He remained seated there, holding the two of them, for about ten minutes before Megan, the last to be unconscious, stirred. Finally, Cassius forced himself under control, the girls both doing the same and all three wiped their eyes before looking around.

"What was all of that?" Cassius asked, noticing they'd all been laying on beds like medical tables arranged in a circle, Manhunter standing in the center.

"What happened in there?" Batman asked Manhunter.

"The exercise...it all went wrong," Manhunter said.

"Exercise?" Robin asked.

"Try to remember," Batman said.

"I'm about to have to do a lot of that," Cassius said. "Give me a pass on this one and just tell us."

Batman narrowed his eyes before speaking. "What you experienced was a _training exercise_. Manhunter psychically linked the nine of you within an artificial reality. You all knew this going in. What you _didn't_ know was that it was a train for failure exercise. No matter what the team accomplished, the scenario was designed to grow worse. Still, you were aware _nothing_ was real, including the deaths of the entire Justice League."

"That is why you hardly grieved, even when Wolf was disintegrated before your eyes," Manhunter said. "With the exception of me including Deathstroke's final words touching at a soft spot and making Rose cry. But all that changed when Artemis and Orphan died."

Cassius glanced at Wally, who looked at Artemis worriedly.

"Though, consciously, Miss Martian knew it was not real, her subconscious mind could not make the distinction," Manhunter said. "She forgot it was only an exercise, and her subconscious took control, making all of you forget too."

All eyes turned to Megan.

"I-I-I'm...I'm so sorry!" Megan apologized, guilt and shame filling her face.

"This isn't her fault!" Connor snapped. "Why didn't you stop the exercise!?"

"We tried, but M'gann had...a death grip on the scenario," Manhunter said. "Even Artemis, who should have awakened after her death, was so convinced she had passed, she slipped into a coma. I realized that I would have to rest control from Miss Martian's subconscious from within, but upon entering the reality, I was overwhelmed by your collective emotion. There was...too much...noise to think clearly...to remember why I was there. The deaths of Ravager, Aqualad, and Superboy helped, but only when the Mothership exploded and Robin, Kid Flash, and Void were silenced, did my mind clear enough to remember my true purpose. To shove M'gann out of the exercise before your comas became permanent. My apologies. I had no idea a training exercise could be so dangerous. So damaging."

Everyone glanced at Megan again, seeing her facing away and crying silently. Shazam moved to comfort her and Cassius sighed, reaching a hand up to his head as the memories from his past life he'd been able to keep at bay tried to force their way tot he front, causing a migraine instantly. Rose and Cassandra gave him concerned looks, but he simply pulled them both into a hug again and sighed quietly, shoving the memories back down for a little longer, wanting to be able to relax in the relief of the two of them being safe. After a little while longer, the Leaguers left, Connor beginning to comfort Megan instead of Shazam, and Cassius headed to his room, Cassandra and Rose making no move to leave him. So a few minutes later, they were all lying together, still holding each other for comfort, and Cassius finally allowed the memories in as he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

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	30. Chapter 30

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Aftermath

A week. It had been a week since the training exercise fiasco. Batman hadn't made them return to the Batcave since, and the liveliness that had once filled the Cave and made it feel like a home was gone. Everyone was still shaken by the exercise, and hardly spoke. Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose were all the most competently functioning members of the Team, but only because their training as Shadows allowed them the chance to learn how to handle stress and trauma a little better. Cassius still sparred with Cassandra and Rose, and they both still sparred with each other, and he still continued both of their lessons, but even among the three of them, things were strained. And Cassius's memories weren't helping. They hadn't all returned, but a large amount had. Enough for him to know that Robin was right, and to know that he missed his family horribly. Enough to feel guilty for just throwing his sister into the ocean instead of burying her.

And then, there was Black Canary. She'd been assigned to give them counseling, or maybe she volunteered, and was, at best, struggling to help them. Cassius wasn't planning tell her, or any of the other Leaguers, that he remembered who he was, and had asked the others to also keep quiet about it, including Manhunter, who had agreed when he'd made the argument that he couldn't deal with that on top of everything else. He hadn't told anyone who didn't know.

"How are you feeling?" Black Canary asked as Cassius sat down in the chair across from her for his turn for a counseling session.

"Like shit," Cassius said. "But I suppose that's to be expected."

"You're much more...grounded than the others about what happened," Canary said. "The others I've talked to have hall tried to deflect it, or pretend they weren't hurting."

"Running from pain doesn't make it go away," Cassius said. "Charging headlong into it also isn't always good. You have to know when to let it in and when not to. Something I learned being beaten to the brink of death by the Shadows." He sighed heavily. "What happened sucked. The down side of letting yourself care about people, is that you also get hurt when you lose them. These are the first friend's I've had since I lost my memory, so...yeah, I'm in pain because I thought I lost them."

"Some more than others," Canary said.

Cassius grimaced. "Yeah. I suppose that's fair. Yes, I...lost my composure when Cassandra died, then when Rose died I lost whatever was left. They...They were the first bright spots in my life after I lost my memories, so...somewhere along the way, they became the most important things in my life. Keeping them safe means everything to me, so...I didn't know how to handle it when I lost them. I still don't."

"Do you view them as your children?" Canary asked.

Cassius frowned. "No. Not my children. Not siblings either. It's...complicated. It's not romantic, if that's what you're trying to get at. Shazam tried to pull that one a couple days ago. It's not like that. It's just..."

"Complicated," Canary finished.

"Very," he smiled tiredly. "You have...no idea."

"What do you mean?" Canary asked.

He hesitated for a moment before sighing heavily. "How much of the exercise could you all see?"

"Well, it was through Manhunter's telepathy, so we only know what he told us," Canary said. "We know about you and Wally's extreme reactions to specific team members' deaths, we know who died and in which order. And we know that there are parts he promised not to tell us because it wasn't his place to."

Cassius nodded. "I...remembered who I was before. Before Void. I don't remember everything, but I remember enough."

"And who is that?" Canary asked.

Cassius shook his head. "I'm sorry. I just...I'm not ready to share."

"Are you not proud?" Canary asked. "I thought you said you were a hero before."

"Oh, no, I was definitely considered a hero," Cassius said. "That hasn't changed."

"You were _considered_ a hero?" Canary caught. "Not you _were_ a hero?"

Cassius frowned, memories drifting through his head. "Have you ever done something you're not particularly proud of, but because of it, you were praised?"

Canary nodded. "Yes, I have."

Cassius nodded. "I was _considered_ a hero. It sure as hell never felt like it."

"How are you handling remembering?" Canary asked. "Do you feel any different?"

Cassius snorted humorlessly. "Right now, I don't even know who to feel differently _as_."

Canary nodded and Cassius sighed heavily, resting his head in his hands for a moment.

"Can we call it here?" Cassius asked.

"Sure," Canary nodded. "If you want to talk again, or need to, I'll be here."

Cassius nodded and thanked her, then left the room, heading out to the beach, letting Manhunter know where he was going on the way. Once he was there, he sat in the sand, staring out to sea for a moment with his knees raised and his arms looped around the tops of them. Then, he shifted so he could press his forehead into his arms and began to cry silently, his two lives warring in his head as they fought to determine who he should be. And all the while, the memories of those he loved dying-his sister being shot in the head in front of him, suffocating his own wife and children, watching Cassandra and Rose be disintegrated-all of it pushed its way to the forefront of his memory, playing over and over again, his heart being crushed more and more with each repeated death.

* * *

Cassius stared out at the mirror, his former appearance staring back at him. Then, he shifted to his newer one. Then back. And again. And again. This went on for nearly thirty minutes before he finally settled somewhere in between. Tan skin, hazel eyes, and dirty blonde hair halfway between his old golden blonde and his new brown. He stared at his new appearance in silence for a long while before sighing, resting his head against the mirror, closing his eyes.

"Why couldn't you just stay gone?" Cassius sighed. "I was happy without you."

Someone knocked on the door and Cassius took a deep breath before turning and opening it, Robin's eyes widening slightly before he cleared his throat.

"Are you coming to training?" Robin asked. "We...uh...We're all worried about you. You've been shut in your room for the last couple weeks."

"I don't...I don't know," Cassius said.

"Well, I think you should," Robin said. "Cassandra and Rose are worried sick. They're both convinced they did something wrong."

He turned, walking away, and Cassius sighed, resting his face in his hands for a moment before leaning against the once-again-closed door.

"And here I was thinking I could handle stress and trauma well," Cassius muttered. "Okay. Two weeks is enough. Time to get over yourself Cassius. Your girls are worried."

He reached for the switch to open the door only to stop, frowning at himself. After a moment, he shook his head, opening the door and walking out of the room. He walked to the briefing room, where Robin was sparring with Kaldur. As he arrived, he looked around, only seeing Rose and Cassandra watching.

"Where's everyone else?" Cassius asked.

"Megan and Connor went grocery shopping," Robin said, he and Kaldur making no move to stop sparring. "Wally, Artemis, and Zatanna went to help."

Cassius nodded and walked over to kneel down in front of Rose and Cassandra. "Hey girls. I'm sorry for worrying you."

"Sorry," Cassandra said.

Cassius shook his head, smiling and taking one of each of their hands. "You two didn't do anything wrong. I just needed time to work through my memories from my old life. I'm sorry for pushing you two away and worrying you. Can you forgive me?"

Cassandra nodded, smiling, and Rose did the same, both of their eyes watering.

"We forgive you," Rose said.

Cassius smiled and nodded tugging their hands. Both stepped forward to give him a hug, and just as he moved to wrap his arms around them, there was a blinding light and they were gone.

* * *

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	31. Chapter 31

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Separated

I'm sorry for pushing you two away and worrying you. Can you forgive me?"

Cassandra nodded, smiling, and Rose did the same, both of their eyes watering.

"We forgive you," Rose said.

Cassius smiled and nodded tugging their hands. Both stepped forward to give him a hug, and just as he moved to wrap his arms around them, there was a blinding light and they were gone. Cassius recoiled like he'd been slapped, staggering backward before looking around. Kaldur and Robin were gone too. He turned, sprinting to the hangar, finding Batman, Zatanna, and Red Tornado all present, but the rest of the Team was gone.

"Who are you?" Batman demanded.

"Void," Cassius said. "I'm going to go out on a limb and say the rest of the Team disappeared in a flash of light?"

"Yes," Batman said. "Robin, Aqualad, Orphan, and Ravager too?"

"Yeah," Cassius said.

"Let's go," Batman said, all of them heading to the briefing room where Batman pulled up the computer.

Already reports were streaming in. Every child was gone. Anyone seventeen years old or younger. Cassius frowned. Apparently he counted as an adult, despite his body being about sixteen currently.

"This has to be a spell, right?" Cassius asked.

"I do not know any sorcerer with this kind of power," Zatara said. "Even Doctor Fate."

"What about a group of them?" Cassius asked.

Zatara was silent for a long few moments before nodding. "Bring up the globe. I will locate the focal spell."

Batman nodded pulling up the globe, and Zatara chanted his spell, a small red dot appearing on Roanoke Island.

"Okay," Cassius nodded. "We have a location."

"I'll inform the Justice League," Batman said. "Once we've gotten a grip on the chaos that's about to ensue, we'll head to Roanoke."

Zatara nodded and everyone split up. Cassius headed to his room before punching the wall hard enough to crater it. He could _not_ deal with this right now. He was worried sick, and not knowing if they had been erased, teleported away, cast into a separate dimension, or some other magic bullshit was tearing him apart with anxiety. And the longer he was in his room trying to calm himself, the worse his stomach twisted into knots.

"Void," Batman said from behind him. "You have to calm down."

"I'm trying," Cassius said.

"They'll be okay," Batman said. "Wherever they are, they're not helpless. They can take care of themselves."

Cassius sighed heavily. "You're right."

"Why did you change your appearance?" Batman asked.

"I thought it might help," Cassius said. "And it did, a little."

Batman nodded. "You remembered who you were, didn't you?"

"Yeah," Cassius said. "It's been...difficult to adjust."

"Who were you?" Batman asked.

Cassius shook his head. "I have too much going through my head right not to have this conversation."

Batman nodded. "Alright. I'm going to return to monitoring the League's activity and the news. Once you've calmed down, join us."

Cassius nodded and Batman left. Cassius waited a few more minutes, his anxiety returning rapidly, until his stomach was twisted so tightly that it hurt to sit still. He stood, walking out of the room and back to the briefing room where Captain Marvel was talking to Batman and Zatara.

"There are two dimensions," Batman was saying. "One for the adults, and one for the children."

"Wait, they're all safe?"

"Yeah!" Captain Marvel said. "I can travel back and forth between the two dimensions, too!"

"That's great!" Cassius said, his stomach untwisting itself slowly. "Can you let Rose and Cassandra know I'm okay for me?"

"Sure," Captain Marvel said. "Shazam!"

Lightning struck him in the chest from the ceiling, and suddenly he was gone. A moment later, he reappeared in another flash of lightning.

"So, Cassandra started crying, and Rose said you're an asshole for scaring them," Captain Marvel said.

Cassius snorted, shaking his head. "Yeah well, fair's fair. They scared the shit out of me too."

"Captain Marvel, you'll be relaying messages so that we can coordinate," Batman said.

"Roger!" Captain Marvel said, saluting.

And so, the planning process began. It wasn't easy, but after about an hour and a half, the plan was set for a strike from both teams together on whoever had cast the spell. They all left togethers, reaching the location at night. As they arrived, they found a seal with five spots for sorcerers, currently having four present, meaning one was in the children's world. Present to face them were Wotan, Felix Faust, Wizard, and Blackbriar Thorn, all extremely powerful wizards. If Cassius had to guess, the children would be battling Klarion.

Cassius looked to Batman just as he gave the signal and everyone moved in. Captain Marvel reached the four sorcerers first, landing behind Wizard. A moment later, Batman landed behind Blackbriar Thorn, only for his magic to cause a tree to burst from the ground behind Batman, its roots binding him in seconds. Tornado landed behind Faust and sent a pair of cyclones at him, only for him to extend an arm, effortlessly sending a blast of flames through his tornados into Red Tornado's chest, hurling him away. A moment later, Zatara blasted all four with a bolt of lightning, only for the lightning's energy to be transferred into a golden crystal in the center of the seal. Wizard hurled several boulders at Captain Marvel, who smashed them, only for two more to explode into him from the sides. Then, Cassius was in place. A massive goo tendril burst up from the layer of goo that had used the dark ground to mask its approach, grabbing all four and flinging them away from the seal. However, just as he did, a blast of blood red magic energy exploded into one spot of the goo from the crystal, forcefully reverting Cassius to his newest human form and hurling him away. He bounced once before flipping, goo instantly exploding out of his side and grabbing the ground to yank him out of the way of a fire blast from Faust. Just as he did, however, Zatara shot past the seal, grabbing the crystal and beginning to chant. Suddenly, Cassius felt dizzy for a moment before blinking several times and finding himself standing beside Artemis and Robin, who were both unconscious. At the seal, Klarion was kneeling down with a shining, golden ankh trapping his head and hands, and the other four sorcerers, who were just reaching the seal, all groaned and collapsed as the spell being canceled took a sharp draw from their energy.

"Boy, they sure don't make evil immortal sorcerers like they used to," Klarion said. "Oh well." He snapped his left hand's fingers and the ankh began to fade from the left side over, allowing him to stand and dust himself off. "Fun while it lasted. Teekl."

His familiar cat, who he'd apparently transformed into a massive saber-toothed Tiger, released Connor, who it was pinning down, and ran back to him, shrinking back down to its normal size on the way. As soon as he jumped into Klarion arms, Klarion opened a round, red portal.

"See ya later amigos!" Klarion smirked. "Unless I see you first!" Then, he laughed and leapt through the portal.

"Aren't you gonna stop him?" Wally asked Fate.

"To what end?" Fate asked. "Klarion is chaos personified. He _cannot_ be contained."

"Cassius!" Cassandra sheered, tackling him in a hug.

Cassius laughed, sitting up and hugging her back, holing his other arm out to Rose as she reached them, Rose holding him as well instantly.

"We were so worried!" Rose said.

"You?" Cassius asked. "How do you think I felt? I went to hug you both and you were just gone."

"Sorry," Cassandra said.

Cassius smiled, shaking his head. "It's alright. It wasn't your fault. I'm just glad you're both safe."

Both squeezed him before letting him stand, slipping their hands into his. Just as they turned to the others, Zatara went to confront Fate.

"Fate!" He shouted before taking a breath to calm himself. "Great Nabu, release my daughter."

"No," Fate said flatly. "Witness the Hell that can be wrought in hours. The world needs Doctor Fate. And the girl's natural affinity for the Mystic Arts makes her the perfect candidate."

"You can't do that!" Artemis snapped.

"She has her own life to live!" Robin shouted.

"Kent would never allow you-" Wally began.

"Kent Nelson _did_ object, strenuously," Fate said. "So I released his soul into the afterlife. He is gone."

"Take me instead," Zatara said. "My skills are already at their peak, my body is physically stronger, better able to withstand the strain of your power."

"All true," Fate said. "But if I remove the helmet, what guarantee have I that you will don it?"

"My word," Zatara said, spreading his arms and speaking an incantation.

Fate remained silent for a moment before flying down and landing before him. Then, he reached up, removing the helmet. After a moment of coming to her senses, Zatanna smiled.

"Dad!" Zatanna gasped, hugging him.

"Zatanna!" Zatara smiled, holding her tightly, then pulling away. "Remember. I love you." He kissed her on the forehead before taking Fate's helmet. "Take care of my girl."

"You have _my_ word," Batman said.

"No, please!" Zatanna said, shrugging Robin's hand off her shoulders as he raised the helmet. "This was my fault! Dad don't! Dad!"

Then, it was done. The helmet shone as Fate's outfit spread over Zatara in a wave of golden light. He turned to the four restrained sorcerers.

"Leave these to Fate," he said, flying into the air, the sorcerers flying after him. Then, both he and the other sorcerers shone gold and faded from sight.

Zatanna fell to her knees in silence and Robin, Wally, and Artemis hurried over to comfort her. After a few more minutes, they all left, the Team taking the Bio-Ship to the cave, the leaving via Zeta tube to go home and see their families. While they did, Cassius headed to see his own family, bringing Rose and Cassandra with him to introduce them properly.

* * *

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	32. Chapter 32

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Cold

Cassius remained silent as Batman handed out assignments. There were five flying fortresses generating an ice storm across all of North America. As the Watchtower wasn't weaponized and both Green Lanterns were off-world, the Team was going to be working alongside the Justice League to take them down. Wally was only barely keeping from bouncing in excitement. He'd always wanted to work alongside the Justice League.

"Superboy, use the Supercycle to rendezvous with the Batplane at Ice Fortress one," Batman ordered. "You'll drop off Robin and Aqualad, then continue on with Wolf to meet up with Black Canary and Red Tornado at Ice Fortress two."

_"What's the Supercycle?" _Cassius asked through the Team's telepathic link.

_"Sphere can transform into a flying, three-wheeled bike,"_ Connor said.

_"A tricycle?"_ Cassius asked.

"Miss Martian, Artemis, and Zatanna, take the Bio-Ship and rendezvous with Green Arrow and Martian Manhunter in Ice Fortress three. Void, you will fly yourself, Orphan, and Ravager to Ice Fortress five and rendezvous with Wonder Woman, Captain Atom, and the Hawks. Sending all coordinates now."

"Uh, Batman...I...think you...skipped..." Wally trailed off.

"Kid Flash," Batman said. "A young girl in Seattle is in desperate need of a heart transplant. With all conventional air traffic grounded by the storm, You'll need to pick up the donor heart in Boston and run it three thousand miles across the country."

Wally deflated rapidly, crestfallen. "Who is this girl?"

"Does it matter?" Batman asked.

"No, of course not," Wally said, deflating even more. "But...can't we Zeta-"

"Zeta tubes are offline," Robin reminded him. "Sorry."

"Right," Wally said. "Then...How could I say no?"

He didn't sound enthusiastic in any way, and Cassius felt bad, considering this mission was basically Wally's dream. However, Wally understood his job.

"Guess I won't be needing stealth," Wally said, turning his suit back to yellow. "Speedy delivery boy, at your service."

Batman gave them the order to deploy and they all headed outside, Megan taking off in the Bio-Ship with her group, Connor and his group in the Supercycle, which Cassius admitted was actually pretty cool-looking, and Cassius using his wings to fly while holding Cassandra and Rose against him, his goo wrapped around them to keep them warm while they flew.

After a couple of hours, the fortress finally came into view. The Justice League members were flying around avoiding blue laser blasts and smashing cannons, so when Cassius arrived, his wings flapped hard and exploded into a hail of goo spikes, raining down on the fortress and smashing the remaining guns as Cassius landed lightly on the fortress and released the girls before pulling his goo back to himself.

"You're late," Wonder Woman said.

"Do you know how far I just had to fly?" Cassius asked. "My wings are _not_ fast."

"Head inside and prepare to blow the Fortress out of-" Hawkman was cut off by a fist exploding into his jaw and sending him bouncing off the ground.

As the attacker landed on the fortress, his eyes locked onto Cassius from inside of his white helmet with a faceless mask in the front shaped similarly to the Helmet of Fate, but smooth on top, nothing but a pair of eyeholes decorating it. He wore a suit of white, formfitting armor completely identical to Cassius's, a pair of wakizashi crossed on his back, and radiated a cold confidence that was setting off every warning bell and alarm Cassius had. He stood slowly, stare not wavering from Cassius for a second.

"Orphan, Ravager, go inside and find a way to blow this fortress to hell," Cassius said. "Hawks, please go with them as backup."

Both Hawks looked to Captain Atom, who nodded.

They both nodded and Cassius glanced at Cassandra, who looked at him worriedly.

"I'll be on this fortress until you come back out," Cassius promised. "I'm going nowhere without you."

Cassandra nodded and she and Rose turned, running inside, along with the Hawks.

"The Hawks are going to be at a severe disadvantage inside," Wonder Woman said.

"That's why I specified that they were backup," Cassius said. "But at least if they're inside, they'll be alive. He'd kill them if they tried to fight him."

"Who is he?" Captain Atom asked as the man in the mask drew his swords.

"I have no idea," Cassius said. "But I can tell at a glance that he's out of the Hawks' league. Probably out of mine too." His eyes flicked to the wakizashi blades as they caught the light. "Be careful with those swords. They're both depleted promethium allowed with Titanium."

"How do you know?" Wonder Woman asked.

"Because," Cassius said. "I forged them. Those swords were at Deathstroke's house before I blew it up. I recognize the symbol beside their tsuba."

Wonder Woman and Captain Atom both nodded, preparing themselves. Captain Atom's hands began to shine gold, but before any of them could charge, their enemy did. He shot forward so fast he kicked up a cloud of snow dust behind himself, clearing the distance in an instant and slashing at Cassius, only for him to catch the man's arm. Then, the man flipped, drilling a foot into Cassius's chest, hurling him backward into the wall of the raised central section of the fortress. As soon as the man landed, his eyes narrowed and he spun, stepping around Wonder Woman's fist before slashing, only for her to block his blade with her bracer. The resulting impact, however, cratered the fortress beneath their feet and hurled Wonder Woman into Captain Atom just in time to throw his blast off, making it streak into the air harmlessly as the two leaguers fell off the fortress. Cassius pushed himself up as the man turned back to him again.

"Is that strength and speed?" Cassius asked. "Or is it something else?"

"That's hurtful," the man said, his voice deep, smooth, and completely even, betraying his firm belief that he couldn't lose the fight, which might be true, from what he'd displayed so far. "The least you could do is remember the one person you ever feared, Copycat."

Cassius stared at him in silence for a moment before focusing, allowing his memories from his past life to flow as he focused. His body shifted entirely into goo in order to boost his speed and strength as much as possible. Then, goo began to gather in his hands, slowly growing from his palms and forming into a pair of Wakizashi of his own. When the man exploded forward again, his blade met Cassius's before Cassius slashed with his free blade, the man blocking it. When A third arm erupted from Cassius's chest and drilled a punch into the man's chest, he staggered backward a whopping three steps before stopping himself.

"Yeah," Cassius grumbled. "This is going to take a while."

He launched himself forward, his foot crumpling the metal plate he'd been on with the force, and he slashed the metal under the masked man's feet denting before he snapped a roundhouse up into Cassius's head, then slashed. Cassius deflected the slash, stopping himself, and suddenly they began to strike rapidly, their blades clashing rapidly. Finally, Cassius leapt away just before Captain Atom's beam blasted the man, only for him to have stepped out of the way at the last second, avoiding it. Wonder Woman hurled her lasso at the man, but he smirked, catching it and spinning, swinging Wonder Woman around by it, She flipped, flying backward at the same time as planting her feet on the fortress, but the moment she did, the man lifted his own feet, the lasso, which had stretched as he swung it, shortened back to its normal length rapidly, sending him hurtling at her. As he moved to punch her, however, Captain Atom's fist crashed into the side of his head.

He bounced twice before driving his remaining sword into the ground, skidding to a stop. Then, as his feet hit the ground, he grinned, exploding forward yet again. Wonder Woman drew her own sword in time to block his, only for him to streak past her toward the one he'd left behind. He reached for it, only for Cassius to suddenly erupt from the sword's shadow, where he'd hidden himself, his palm exploding into the man's face before he smashed the man's head into the ground. Then, he punted him at Wonder Woman and Captain Atom. Both drilled a fist into his face as he flew toward them and he hurtled toward Cassius again just as Cassius's left side suddenly sprouted a dozen more arms, all of them curling their hands into fists. Then, just as the man reached him, his fists exploded into the man's chest sending him exploding into the raised wall of the fortress, crumpling it into a crater few panels falling off the wall. The man remained there for a moment before stepped forward and beginning to laugh, even as blood dripped from the bottom of his helmet in the front.

"Look at you," he laughed. "A shell of your former self. When did your punches get so soft?"

"You should check your helmet before you talk about me being weak," Cassius said.

The man laughed again. "You think bleeding as lightly as this is significant? After all we've put each other through, every single time we fight, you think something as simple as a rib in my lung is anything?"

Just then, there was a loud crack, the three heroes present all cringing loudly as the man let out a long, content sigh.

"There, you see?" he asked. "Good as new. You, on the other hand, will not recover so quickly."

"Maybe you should actually land a hit on me before your talk about whether or not I'll recover quickly," Cassius said, narrowing his eyes and preparing himself as he reformed his goo wakizashi.

"Oh, I was waiting for you to get serious," the man said. "Or is that really all you're capable of?"

Cassius swallowed hard. For reasons he couldn't understand, he was terrified. And then, he was in pain. In less time than it took for him to even register that the man had moved, he'd hurled a wakizashi, straight as an arrow, into Cassius's throat. Cassius's eyes widened in surprise as the man exploded forward, reaching for it, only to flip, kicking off the blunt side of Wonder Woman's blade as she slashed downward at his arm. As he flipped, his second wakizashi drove itself through Cassius's pelvis and agony flooded through him. He tried to shriek in agony, releasing nothing but a choking sound, and collapsed, Captain Atom ripping both swords out of his body just as soon as he hit the ground. Captain Atom hurled both blades backward off the fortress and Cassius's wounds sealed, only for him to be left shaking and weak from the pain. He struggled to stand, barely making it to his feet before the man swung Wonder Woman around by the arm after catching a punch, slamming her into Cassius and sending both bouncing across the fortress as he dodged around Captain Atom's punches.

"Really, now," the man grinned wickedly. "I would have through a pair of the Justice League's power houses could do more." He jumped, kicking Captain Atom away from himself as Cassius managed to stand again. "You know, I genuinely respect what you're doing for those two little girls."

Cassius's eyes widened.

"After I kill you, I'll make sure the League of Shadows can't steal them back," the man said, though his eyes shone no kindness and told Cassius exactly how he'd go about it.

Cassius's body stopped trembling and he grit his teeth, focusing. His goo began to compress, becoming more streamline and lean. Finally it stopped, and when the man shot forward, Cassius caught his punch. The floor under him crumpled, but Cassius went nowhere. The man's eyes narrowed and crinkled at the corners in a smirk as Cassius glared at him, murder dripping from his own eyes.

"That's more like it," the man grinned, flipping and kicking downward at Cassius, only for Cassius's other hand to catch his leg before Cassius spun, sending him exploding into the wall off to the side.

"You know, I almost forgot," Cassius said, his fingers sharpening inside and out as he formed a second set, both complete with blade-like fingers. "I'm not a fucking hero!"

The man exploded forward and punched at Cassius, but he brushed the punch aside, slashing the man across the abdomen, his claws shredding the man's armor as easily as his flesh. The man spun, swinging a windmill kick, and Cassius moved to remove it. Before he could, the man's same-side hand caught Cassius's wrist before the kick hit, allowing the man to swing Cassius around and hurl him at the wall. Cassius landed on it, grabbing several panels before leaping off the wall into a sprint, hurling the panels at odd intervals, all within a second. The man deflected the first one with a backhanded swing, but his swipe for the second was too early, allowing it to bounce off his face, knocking his third swipe off course. Then, the fourth panel crashed into the third just short of the man and the first spun, slamming into hi under the chin, knocking his helmet loose and up a few inches just before the last panel crashed into his manhood, cracking the armor plate protecting it.

The man staggered backward, reaching up to fix his helmet, only for both of Cassius's right fists to crash into his head, sending him sailing off of the fortress. Then, a moment later, he flipped back up over the edge, his helmet fixed, and swung a hand downward, a cloud of ice spikes the size of spears flying up from the frigid air and ice particles the fortress was spewing. They cloud was about ten feet wide and forming continuously, forming an constant stream of ice spikes, even as the man landed on the fortress. Cassius formed a dozen arms, each with a basic, double-edged, goo shortsword, and began to slash rapidly, deflecting about seventy percent of the spikes. Fortunately, before more than a dozen could impale him, Captain Atom was blocking them with a beam as Wonder Woman drilled a fist into the side of the man's face, sending him bouncing away.

Cassius reformed beside the spikes that had hit him, and sighed, ripping one out of the ground. "Who the fuck is this guy?"

"I have no idea," Captain Atom said. "He needs to be dealt with immediately, though."

"Permanently," Cassius growled. "You can punish me for killing him later."

He stepped forward, hurling the goo spear at the man, only for him to lean out of the way, smirking. Then, an explosion ripped the top of the Fortress between them apart, a massive fireball roaring out of it before settling down to a ten-foot-wide inferno reaching three feet high out of the hole, but the man was gone. Cassius looked around for him but saw nothing. The fortress began to fall, listing heavily toward the side Cassius and the two Justice League members were on, threatening to make them fall off. Cassius reverted to his newest appearance with goo attaching him to the metal as Wonder Woman and Captain Atom both flew off the fortress, the Hawks joining them after a moment, then stopped.

"They haven't come back out yet," Captain Atom said.

"That's why Void is waiting," Wonder Woman said.

"Isn't he at least going to go after them?" Captain Atom asked.

"No," Wonder Woman said. "He has too much faith in them."

Just then, Cassandra and Rose appeared in the doorway on the right side of the raised section from where Cassius stood and looked around, then down at him. He spread his arms and both leapt down at him. He leapt off of the fortress to catch them, and the moment he had, he flipped goo attaching them to his sides as a pair of wings formed behind him, beating hard and stopping their fall before he flew back up toward Wonder Woman and Captain Atom.

"You shouldn't have waited on the fortress," Rose said. "You could have been caught in an explosion."

"I told you I'd be waiting on the fortress for you," Cassius said.

He looked back and stopped, seeing the man he'd been fighting standing on the highest side of the Fortress, watching them. Then, he turned, leaping into the blast of frigid air still spewing from the vent behind him.

"Who was that?" Rose asked.

"I don't know," Cassius said. "But he's strong. He fought the three of us and was able to keep us largely on the defensive. And he knew me in my past life."

"Bad," Cassandra said.

"Yeah," Cassius said. "It's really bad. But there's nothing we can do about him now. We'd need Superman and Flash at a minimum."

Cassandra nodded and rested her head against his chest, squeezing him gently.

"I'm alright," Cassius assured her. "You two did well. Who was behind it?"

"We don't know," Hawkman said as they reached the Leaguers. "We never met anyone. The fortress was automated."

Cassius shook his head. "Impressive, if nothing else. We're heading back to the Cave."

Wonder Woman nodded. "We'll inform the League about that man. Be careful. Obviously, he's targeting you."

Cassius nodded and branched off, remaining silent as he flew, searching his old life's memories for anything about the man, yet he could find nothing. Finally, he sighed silently, returning his attention to the present.

* * *

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	33. Chapter 33

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Brutality

Cassius watched the Bio-Ship leave, sighing heavily. They were going to stop Queen Bee, dictator of Bialya, from manipulating the ruler of a neighboring country into handing over the entire country to her. Kaldur was helping Aquaman at the moment, so Robin had been placed in charge. While the Team dealt with that, however, Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose, were all going to be going through intensive training under Batman, Superman, and Martian Manhunter. After eleven days of silence, the League had finally reached the decision that they couldn't protect Cassius or the girls, so they would be trained harder in order to get them ready to protect themselves.

"Are you ready?" Batman asked.

"No," Cassius said. "But I don't have a choice."

"Before we begin, have you remembered anything new about him?" Batman asked.

"No," Cassius said. "Nothing. And not for lack of trying."

Batman nodded. "Maybe if you would tell us who you used to be, we would know who it was."

"No," Cassius said flatly. "I'll just take the training."

Batman watched him in silent for a moment before turning and walking back to the Zeta tube, Cassius and the others following.

* * *

Cassius groaned, pushing himself to his feet as Batman readied himself again. He was dying. He had to be. He was in more pain than any of his training sessions as a Shadow. However, he also knew he had no choice in the matter, so he readied himself again and charged. He threw a punch at Batman, who leaned out of the way and drilled a fist into his gut. He spun, throwing a windmill kick and received a foot between his legs. He staggered away, then ducked under a punch, only for Batman to drill a knee into his nose. Then, a foot connected with his solar plexus and hurled him backward out of the run, gasping and wheezing. Batman turned away from him, turning to Rose next. She charged instantly, striking viciously and quickly, only for him to beat her just as mercilessly as Cassius, sending her rolling out of the ring within seconds, as he had every round all day.

Cassandra didn't give hi the chance to turn to her before she charged. She slammed a roundhouse kick to the back of his leg, dropping him the that knee before flipping and slamming a kick into the back of his head. He fell, only to transition into a somersault, catching her head between legs and yanking her to the ground. She flipped and twisted instantly, slipping out of his grip before kicking off his chest, flipping backward to her feet. Batman flipped to his feet as well and stepped forward, punching at her, only for her to knock it aside, as well as the next, forcing his arms across his body before jumping and slamming her feet into his crossed upper arms, throwing him away. He landed in a backward somersault and regained his feet just in time to catch a punch and spin, sweeping her feet out from under her before hurling her away. As soon as he let go, he turned, deflecting a punch from Cassius, then slammed a knee into his solar plexus yet again, once again robbing him of his breath. Cassius staggered backward before Batman delivered a handful of punches to his head in a second before spinning and slamming a windmill kick into his chin, spinning him and dropping him on the spot. Rose charged again, but Batman caught her punch and spun, slamming her into the ground in an arm bar. Then, he released her arm and slammed a kick into her side, throwing her out of the ring two feet off the ground.

"You two aren't doing well enough," Batman said before leaping over Cassandra, landing behind her.

As he moved to punch her, however, she used a windmill kick to knock his punch aside, then set her foot down before her other snapped up, slamming into the small of his back and causing his muscles to all spasm at once as she hit a nerve, dropping him to the ground before dropping and holding a batarang to his throat.

"Better," Batman said. "At least one of you can fight well."

Cassandra backed away, putting her batarang away before readying herself again. Then, they continued.

* * *

Cassius grit his teeth, straining under the weight on the bar. He didn't want to say Batman was intentionally being an asshole, but Batman was supposed to be spotting him while he bench pressed to test his strength, but instead had walked away to get a lemonade from Alfred, leaving Cassius to try and lift three hundred fifteen pounds alone without resorting to his powers. His arms were shaking like they were having a seizure, sweat was pouring down his beat red face, and the bar was going nowhere, sitting about halfway up.

"Lift," Batman said flatly as he stepped up beside Cassius.

Cassius resisted the urge to snap at him. Doing so would both get his ass kicked and make him drop the bar on his chest. Batman stood over him for several long seconds, sipping at his lemonade before setting it down and walking away, calling Cassandra and rose over to spar. Except, he was even more brutal than normal. The bar began to slowly descend as Cassius glanced at the ring in time to see Batman drill a punch into the top of Rose's head so hard her head bounced off the ground. Then, when Cassandra moved to fight him, he caught her punch, allowed her to punch him with her other arm in order to catch that, then drilled a knee into her gut before swinging her around into Rose. And just like that, fury flooded Cassius and the bar slammed down on its rack with him only barely noticing. He stormed into the ring and Batman turned to him, nodding.

"Better," Batman said. "Now control your anger and attack."

"Oh, I intend to attack," Cassius snarled, lunging at striking, only for a blistering barrage of punches and kicks to slam into him.

Batman was holding nothing back, and within seconds, Cassius was lying on the ground in a heap, groaning and bloody.

* * *

"Why do you insist on teaching her to read, write, and speak the hard way?" Manhunter asked. "I could simply use my telepathy to teach her."

"No thank you," Cassius said, not looking away from the paragraph Cassandra had written as part of her class. "Telepaths only had anything to do with Cassandra when they were being used to torture her in order to teach her to resist. She doesn't even let Megan in during missions. I pass messages and orders to her myself. Also, if you used your telepathy to make her be able to speak, there's a chance you might weaken her ability to read people's body language."

"I see," Manhunter said. "Very well. I will leave it to you, then." He looked at the clock. "It is time for more training."

Cassius sighed and nodded, following him out of the library with the others, the four of them heading down to the cave where Superman was going to be sparing with them instead of Batman, partially to see if they could adjust to a new opponent, and partially because Batman was away on a diplomatic mission as Bruce Wayne. Cassius went first, attacking Superman as viciously as he'd been learning to attack Batman, but his strikes were about as effective and as painful as punching a brick wall. Superman was careful not to break anything when he hit back, but his Kryptonian body was solid when Cassius punched it anyway. As he had expected. Still, he fought for as long as he could manage before eventually being flung out of the ring.

"You're using your rage for your power?" Superman said.

"I'm using what Batman's been beating into us," Cassius said.

Superman frowned but nodded and Rose charged next. She did well, but not as good as Cassius. Then, Cassandra went. Her fight was longer, with her ability allowing her to avoid his strikes better than the others, and even though her own strikes were as useless as the others' had been, she kept at it relentlessly until he finally hurled her out of the ring too.

"Rose, Cassius, you two shouldn't be using your rage," Superman said. "I know that's what Batman is trying to teach you, but your your specific previous training, you shouldn't. It's easy to lose yourself to that."

"What then?" Rose asked.

"You both need to find something," Superman said. "Cassandra's found something. She doesn't use her anger to fight."

Cassius glanced at her before nodding slowly. "I'll try."

"I suppose I will too," Rose said. "Using my anger is what my father tried to teach me, too."

"Good," Superman nodded. "Now, the three of you are going to fight me and Manhunter together. Cassius, go ahead and use your goo to enhance your strength."

Cassius nodded, encasing his arms and legs before they all charged.

* * *

Cassius groaned as he dragged himself back to his feet. It was the last week of their intensive training. He hadn't noticed any progress, but they'd graduated from being beaten bloody by Batman, to being beaten bloody by Batman, Superman, and Manhunter all at once. It was _not_ as fun as it sounded. He took a breath before charging again, forming his goo around his arms and legs once again, only for Manhunter to fly out of the ground and punch him, sending him flying into Superman's fist. He crashed to the ground and bounced, landing on his feet just in time for Batman to grab him from behind, swinging him backward and slamming him onto his upper back. He groaned and the three Leaguers all moved away from him so that Rose could go. Cassius groaned, letting his strains, bruises, cracked cheekbones, broken nose, and various other injuries would heal before standing just as Batman's roundhouse kick hurled Rose away, the girl completely unconscious. Cassandra charged instantly, and, as always, did well. However, with three of them fighting her at once, even she didn't last very long.

* * *

Cassius dropped onto the goo throne with a long, loud groan, Cassandra and Rose both dropping into the two he'd formed for them as well, Rose groaning and Cassandra silent and seeming for all the world to not be in pain, though Cassius knew otherwise. They'd finally finished the training and were sent back to the Cave. Batman had an important League meeting to attend to, Connor had left to walk Wolf and didn't come back, and everyone else was away having Thanksgiving dinner, besides Zatanna and Megan who were splitting their time between Megan worrying about Connor and helping Zatanna make Thanksgiving dinner for the Team. Cassius felt bad for not helping, but he barely had the strength to stand.

"Dinner's almost ready," Megan said, walking into the room. "Are you okay?"

"We'll be fine," Cassius said. "Eventually." He looked over at the door as Zatanna walked into the room. "Zatanna, can you heal broken bones?"

"I can probably reset them, noses being the easiest, but it would be as painful as anyone else doing it," Zatanna said. "No actual healing."

"Alright," Cassius nodded. "Worth a shot."

"Who's hurt?" Megan asked.

"I have a hairline fracture in my skull," Rose said. "And Cassandra broke the bones in her right hand."

"What!?" Megan gasped. "Why!? Who did you fight?"

"I fought Batman," Rose said. "Cassandra broke her hand against Superman's jaw."

"What!?" both girls almost shrieked.

"That's horrible!" Megan said.

"Why would they force you to go through that!?" Zatanna asked.

"Because that guy I fought on Ice Fortress five will do a hell of a lot worse than break our hands," Cassius said.

"I'll see if I can find anything to help," Zatanna said. "I'm sure my dad had something to help people heal faster."

"Thank you," Cassius said, then groaned as he pushed himself to his feet, both of the girls standing as well, Rose also groaning. "Alright. Let's get cleaned up for dinner. You two need a hand getting anything ready?"

"No, we can manage," Zatanna said. "Thank you though."

Cassius nodded and headed for the bathroom with the girls. Once they'd washed their hands, they headed to the dining room, arriving along with most of the others and taking their places around the table for dinner with the Team.

* * *

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	34. Chapter 34

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Frailty

Cassius watched as the gang ran away from the jewelry store. They weren't a particularly skilled gang. They smashed the front window with a crow bar and set off the alarm, and now they were running down the street with their arms loaded with shiny gold and silver necklaces, one guy had a string of pearls around his neck, and one had a sack filled with jewelry over his shoulder like Santa's toy sack.

"Void, Ravager, Orphan, they're yours," Batman's voice said from Cassius's earpiece.

"Understood," Void said. "Orphan, you're up first. Ravager and I will drop once you have their attention."

Orphan nodded from her place on the roof opposite Cassius, then dropped, using her grappling gun to swing down behind the one with the sack, who was trailing behind, then retracted the cable and clipped the gun to the back of her waist again before firing a cable net at the gang member, making him drop his pistol and the sack and attaching him to the wall of a building. The rest all spun, the apparent leader swearing as Cassandra pulled her captive's nun mask off.

"Fuck no!" the leader said. "No rats allowed!"

His arm snapped up, his TEC-Nine buzzing to life toward the man, who shrieked in fear, only for Orphan to step into the way, several bullets slamming into her back. Then, the bullets stopped as Cassius crashed down on the leader, shattering both of his legs and dropping him before a goo arm burst out of his back for each of the others, grabbing them and smashing them into the wall, knocking out all four via a cracked skull, before streaking over to Orphan. He had seen where she was shot. She needed a hospital immediately.

"Cave, now!" Batman's voice ordered.

"She needs a hospital!" Cassius snarled, forming wings.

"CAVE! ! !" Batman ordered.

Cassius grit his teeth before exploding into the air, flying away from the city and toward the hidden entrance to the cave. As soon as he arrived, Alfred took her from him, sprinting up the stairs with her. Cassius followed immediately after him, shifting his armor into a pair of jeans, a white tee-shirt, and a leather jacket as he ran. Finally, they reached a room where Alfred locked him out, saying he had to remove the bullets, but not to worry because he had medical training and had been treating the Bat Clan for years. That did nothing to alleviate Cassius's worry, so instead of walking through the door, he simply turned into goo and went under it. As he reformed, Alfred had already gotten Cassandra's armor and shirt off her upper body and had her lying on her stomach while he removed the bullets. within a second, Cassius was at her other side, beginning to remove the other bullets, able to tell which he had by whether or not the hole was still stretched open.

"I told you to wait outside," Alfred said, not slowing his treatment at all.

"And I ignored you," Cassius said, removing the last bullet and pressing a bandage to it. "I can help. I was taught to treat all forms of wounds, including bullet wounds."

"Very well," Alfred said. "We'll need to be quick."

Cassius nodded and they both fell silent, working quickly and efficiently to treat her. Finally, after much longer than Cassius would have liked, including Cassius shapeshifting into Cassandra in order to give her a blood transfusion that was essentially her own blood thanks to the way his shapeshifting worked, they were finished. Alfred gently pulled the sheet up over her to her shoulders for modesty and sat back, letting out a long, slow breath.

"What happened?" Alfred finally asked.

"She caught one of the thieves we were stopping, so the leader tried to kill him," Cassius said. "She shielded him."

Alfred nodded. "By the bullets and the placement, I'd guess he used a TEC-Nine. We're lucky. That's a very inaccurate weapon. If he'd had a proper gun, she might be dead."

"Agreed," Cassius nodded. "Still, it was close."

"Indeed," Alfred nodded. "I'm impressed by your skill treating injuries."

"I could say the same," Cassius said. "I thought you were just a very loyal butler who happened to work for a vigilante. Turns out you're practically a doctor too."

Alfred smiled. "There's a reason Bruce Wayne doesn't get shot every third night."

Cassius nodded, dropping his eyes to Cassandra, whose face was contorted with pain. He reached out gently, brushing her hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear. "I treated her bullet wounds every time her father shot her, giving her the scars. Not just guns, of course. Guns, knives, swords. Her training was almost as bad as mine, and they decapitated me several times during my training."

"You were decapitated?" Alfred asked.

Cassius smiled and reached up to his hair, a line of his neck turning to goo before he lifted his head off of his shoulders, smirking at Alfred's grimace. "Freaky, huh? This is partially why I say I'm not even human anymore." He reconnected his head. "I'm living goo that takes on a human form. I can heal from anything, as long as it's not a fire or something of comparable or greater heat, or ultrasonic frequencies."

Alfred nodded. "That must be hard."

Cassius sighed. "I've gotten used to the idea that I'm not human anymore. I don't care about that. The only thing I care about now is protecting her and Rose."

"You care about them deeply," Alfred said.

Cassius sighed. "It's not anything romantic."

"I didn't say it was," Alfred said. "I merely said you care about them. You're the one who jumped to romantic feelings."

"No," Cassius said. "Captain Marvel did. Now I just naturally assume that everyone else thinks the same thing he does. But it's not like that. It's...I've done a lot wrong in my life. Too much to atone for, but..."

"You believe that protecting these two, and helping them to live a better life than you did will make things at least partially right," Alfred supplied.

"I...I don't know," Cassius sighed. "I guess? It's...complicated."

Alfred nodded. "Well, for what it's worth, I believe you are doing the right thing. I can't think of anyone who would be better to look after them than you."

Cassius smiled. "Thank you."

Alfred nodded and turned, walking out of the room. After a couple more minutes, Rose ran in, still wearing her armor, and dropped into the seat he'd just left, her face filled with worry.

"She's okay now," Cassius said. "She'll recover within a few weeks."

Rose nodded, wiping her eyes. "Thank God. I was so worried."

Cassius nodded. "So was I. You two are all I have. You've both got to stop worrying me some day."

Rose laughed. "You're one to talk. You've worried us a many times as we've worried you."

Cassius chuckled. "I suppose so."

Cassandra winced before her eyes slowly opened. "Cassius?"

"I'm here," Cassius said. "Don't try to move. You were hurt pretty bad."

"Okay?" Cassandra asked.

"Yes," Cassius said. "You're going to be okay, and the thief you protected wasn't hurt at all."

Cassandra nodded, smiling in relief.

"You did well," Cassius smiled, gently brushing a hand over her hair. "You scared the shit out of me again, but you did a good job."

Cassandra smiled. "Sorry."

He shook his head. "I'm proud of you. I wish you'd be more selfish so I wouldn't have to worry, but I'm proud of you."

"Rose?" Cassandra asked.

"I'm here," Rose said, Cassandra turning her head to smile over at her. "I'm glad you're okay."

Cassandra winced as she held an arm our to either side. Both of them took her hands and smiled, remaining there together for hours before both fell asleep in their chairs.

* * *

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	35. Chapter 35

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Recovering

Cassius set Cassandra on her bed in the Cave gently, Cassandra's face relaxing once she was still. As careful as he was, moving around had aggravated her bullet wounds, and she was too tired to not show her pain. Once he'd set her down, he knelt beside the bed. A moment later, Rose entered with Zatanna and Megan.

"Oh my God!" Zatanna gasped. "What happened?"

"She shielded someone," Cassius said. "She's going to be okay, but it'll take a while for her to heal."

"I think I can help," Zatanna said. "I asked Doctor Fate to ask my dad about healing spells and he told me where to find a book full of them that he kept. I've only managed to learn one, and it doesn't heal instantaneously, but it _should_ speed up her healing until the wounds are sealed, and once it's cast, it's self-sustaining, so it won't draw on my energy constantly. She'll be tired a lot, though."

Cassius looked to Cassandra, who nodded, and Zatanna walked over, glancing at Cassius.

"I need to be able to see the wounds," she said.

Cassius nodded, lifting Cassandra's shirt carefully. As he'd expected, Zatanna and Megan both gasped when they saw her scars. After a moment of staring, Zatanna cleared her throat and held out her arms, chanting a short spell. Cassandra's wounds glowed a faint gold for a moment before the light faded and Zatanna sighed.

"There," Zatanna said. "That should do it. I think they should be healed in about four days or so, but it might be a little longer."

"Well, the original timeframe was about four weeks, so I doubt your guess being a couple days off will be anything to worry about," Cassius said. "Thank you."

Zatanna nodded.

"Thank...Zatanna," Cassandra said.

"You're welcome," Zatanna smiled.

Megan frowned. "I thought you said she just didn't know English. She sounds like she's partially incapable of speech."

"Well, the parts of her brain meant to control the ability to speak instead developed to interpret body language in place of speech," Cassius said. "I'm slowly teaching her to speak, and I _can_, given enough time, but in order to do it so that I don't risk her ability being weakened, I have to teach her the hard way, which means teaching her brain a new function. Imagine that you're trying to learn how to use your powers for the first time. You aren't able to use them every time you try, or get them right every time, right?"

"No," Megan said. "I suppose not."

"Exactly," Cassius said. "And then add on top of that that while I'm teaching her how to speak, I'm also trying to teach her one of the most complex languages on Earth, and it's going to take some time."

Megan nodded. "That makes sense."

"By the way, where is everyone, anyway?" Cassius asked.

"Robin's still in Gotham, and Wally, Kaldur, and Artemis all went to do a stakeout on Sportsmaster, along with the team's newest member, Red Arrow," Megan said.

"Oh, Artemis is _not_ going to enjoy this mission," Cassius said.

"She seemed like she was unhappy Red Arrow joined," Zatanna said.

"She probably feels like she's not going to have a place on the team since he's an old friend of Wally, Kaldur, and Robin, and a more experienced archer," Cassius said. "I'm sure Wally will cheer her up."

"Wally?" Zatanna frowned. "I thought Wally like Megan."

"He did," Cassius said. "But now that he knows she's off the market, he'll have to look elsewhere. Which means he'll have to finally admit his feelings for Artemis."

"How do you know he has feelings for Artemis?" Zatanna asked.

"Did you hear about our virtual exercise?" Cassius asked.

"The one that went wrong?" Zatanna asked. "Yeah."

"When Artemis died during that, Wally flipped," Cassius said. "Full denial."

Zatanna grinned, shaking her head. "I'll have to start teasing him to help him along, then."

"Not too much," Cassius said. "We don't want him to be ashamed, just embarrassed into admitting it."

"Got it," Zatanna smiled. "Well, we're supposed to be figuring out what Red Tornado does in his apartment. Want to come?"

"I'm going to stay with Cassandra," Cassius said.

"Same," Rose nodded.

"Alright," Zatanna said. "Let us know if you need anything."

"We will," Cassius smiled. "Thank you again."

She nodded and left with Megan, Cassius and Rose settling in to stay with Cassandra and do whatever she needed, whether it was getting her food, helping her sit up to eat it, or help her to the bathroom. She'd tried to argue she didn't actually need them to wait on her so much, but they'd both refused to listen to her.

* * *

Cassius walked out into the briefing room to see what the yelling was about just in time for Red Arrow to hold up a tracking device.

"Her tracer," Wally said. "So? Cheshire ditched it!"

"No," Red Arrow said. "_Artemis _ditched_ that_." He gestured at a second tracking device Kaldur was holding. "To send _us_ on a wild goose chase. She put _this_ one on Cheshire!"

Wally stared at it before turning to Artemis. "Artemis?" His eyes narrowed when she didn't answer. "Are you _that_ freaked out about Arrow joining the team you had to prove yourself by bringing down the bad guys solo? Please, tell me I'm wrong!"

Artemis inhaled, preparing to defend herself, only to sigh, dropping her gaze to the floor.

"Well, nice going," Wally said. "What you proved is that you're insecure and selfish." he tossed a sai he was holding to the floor at her feet. "Keep the sai." he turned, taking the tracer from Red Arrow. "_This _is the right souvenir for the mission."

"So how will you betray us next time?" Red Arrow demanded.

"Enough!" Kaldur said. "If making a mistake was a betrayal, we would _all_ be traitors," Kaldur said.

"The only mistake was letting Red Arrow onto this team," Cassius said. "He's a toxic influence and he's going to cause everyone to turn on one another. One mission and he's already got Artemis hating herself and Wally so mad he's probably not going to talk to anyone for a few days."

"That's enough, Cassius," Kaldur said.

"No, let Traitor Number Two speak," Red Arrow said. "I'd say let the _other_ two traitors he brought back from the League of Shadows with him speak, but from what I've heard, only one of them is actually smart enough to do that."

Cassius snarled angrily, but refrained from ripping his head off. He could see Red Arrow's arm was tensed in preparation for a fight, and he'd rather not humiliate him and get himself kicked off the team. Not yet. There'd be time to fight him during their first sparring session with him.

"That is enough!" Kaldur snapped. "Cassius is not a traitor, and neither are Cassandra or Rose. You may have your opinions of this team and the members on it, as well as your reasons for joining it, but you _will not_ antagonize the other members of this Team. If you prove to be doing more harm to this Team's cohesion than you are doing good on missions, you will be removed from the Team. Is that understood?"

"Perfectly," Red Arrow growled.

"Good," Kaldur said. "Now, I must report to Batman. The rest of you, get some sleep."

Red Arrow stormed off immediately, and Artemis turned to leave as well, obviously wanting to be alone, only for Cassius to follow her.

"What do you want?" Artemis asked. "Are you going to try and tell me how bad I fucked up too?"

"No," Cassius said. "You've already told yourself that a million times. I'm here to give you advice."

"About what?" Artemis asked.

"Red arrow's here to find the mole," Cassius said. "By trying to prove yourself and ending up causing the mission to fail, you've proven your guilt to him. Kaldur might also suspect you now."

"Great," Artemis said. "So, what, I'm screwed?"

"Not yet," Cassius said. "You won't be kicked off the team over this. And you can still win Wally back."

"Why would I care what he-"

"Artemis," Cassius said flatly, smirking knowingly. "Let's stop pretending that we don't both know that you and Wally are both desperately in love with each other and are just both too afraid to do anything about it."

Artemis glared at him. "I am _not_ in love with Wally!" She sighed. "_Maybe_ I have a little bit of a crush. At most."

Cassius rolled his eyes. "Sure. Anyway, you can still make things right. But in order to do it, you have to be honest with them. All of them. You have to tell them who you are, specifically who you're related to, and you have to tell Wally how you feel, preferably somewhere private so he doesn't feel ambushed or pressured to say anything specific."

"I...I can't," Artemis said. "I..."

"They wouldn't throw you off the team," Cassius assured her. "Wally might not feel the same, but you wouldn't get kicked off the team. And then your family wouldn't be able to hold it over your head as blackmail."

"What about you?" Artemis asked. "When are you finally going to tell the League who you really are?"

"Soon," Cassius said. "Some memories are still coming in, and I want to remember as much as I can before I tell them. And...I don't want them to change how they treat me based off of who I used to be. I want to earn their trust by being who I am now, not have them give it to me because of who I used to be. I think only Batman would still distrust me, and I'm not even sure about that."

"Not all of them distrust you," Artemis said.

"I know," Cassius said. "But...I've gotten used to how things are. I'm not ready for it to change again."

Artemis nodded. "No matter who you were, you're still you, and you're still a good man. At least, you are now. Early Void, not so much."

Cassius chuckled. "On that we can agree. Anyway, think about what I said. I'm going to head back to Cassandra."

"Speaking of crushes," Artemis said.

"It's not like that," Cassius said flatly.

"Not from your side," Artemis said. "But you must have noticed that both of those girls are practically in love with you."

Cassius sighed heavily, then nodded. "I know. I'm going to try and change their minds."

"Why?" Artemis asked.

"Well, for one thing, I'm more than fifty years old, give or take," Cassius said. "For another thing, they're nine."

"One, you can be as old as you want," Artemis countered. "And two, both of them are much more mature than nine. If I had to gage them, I'd say they were at least fifteen in maturity. That tends to happen when you grow up with Slade Wilson and David Cain as parents."

Cassius sighed. "What're you trying to say? I should give them a chance?"

"No," Artemis said. "I'm just pointing out that your arguments are both invalid."

"Them being nine years old is _not_ invalid," Cassius said. "And I'm not someone that _I_ want them having feelings for. So I'm going to try and change their minds."

Artemis nodded. "Good luck. Girls aren't that easy."

Cassius snorted and walked away, holding his hand over his shoulder in farewell.

* * *

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	36. Chapter 36

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Problems

Cassius flipped over a thief and twisted, slamming an aerial roundhouse kick into his face, dropping him. As he did, the second thief raised his shotgun, only for Cassandra to swing down from above, once foot hitting the shotgun and knocking it aside before Cassius could be shot, her other foot slamming into his head and knocking him out as well. Cassius nodded, smiling, and cuffed both as police sirens began to wail. They turned, disappearing into an alleyway and both returned to the top of the buildings, rejoining the others in time for Batman to turn and leave, heading for another crime. They followed, reaching a bank as several thugs came out of it with trash bags of money. Batman pointed to Rose and Cassandra and both nodded and dropped, swinging down to the thugs and dropping them all in seconds before zip-tying them all and returning. After a few more hours of patrolling, during which they stopped two muggings and another robbery, they all headed back to Wayne Manor.

"Get changed and cleaned up," Batman said. "You're all heading on a mission in the morning."

"Understood," Cassius nodded.

They all headed upstairs, taking turns showering and changing before heading to the Cave. They spent a little while catching up with the others who were there, since they'd been away for weeks, working with Batman. Finally, they all headed to bed. However, after a couple hours, Cassius stirred, frowning as his brain struggled to get going before hearing Cassandra sobbing. He launched himself out of bed and ran to her room. However, when he opened the door, she was curled into a ball, sobbing, but asleep. He sighed. It had been a long time since she'd had a nightmare. He walked into the room, sitting on the side of the bed and gently shaking her awake. She jerked, looking around wildly before pushing herself up and pressing her face into his chest, hands balling in his shirt as she sobbed, Cassius holding her.

"It's been a while since you had a nightmare," Cassius said. "Was it your father?"

She nodded, and he sighed, tightening his hold on her and curling around her slightly, stroking his hand up and down her back comfortingly. After a few minutes, Megan stepped into the doorway, her worried expression softening when she saw him.

_"I've got it,"_ he said as he felt her mind connect to his.

Megan nodded and closed the door. After a little while, Cassandra had cried herself to sleep and he lay her down gently, only for her to instantly grab his hand, looking up at him through fresh tears. He smiled.

"I'm not going anywhere tonight," he said."

She nodded and he pulled the covers back, climbing into the bed beside her and pulling the covers over them both before taking her into his arms again, Cassandra once again burying her face in his chest, though not sobbing this time. He smiled, stroking her back again and closed his eyes, waiting until he felt her drift off to allow himself to do the same.

* * *

Cassius watched Robin and Megan flipping through the air. They, Artemis, Red Arrow, and Connor were all posing as a trapeze family called the Daring Dangers while they went undercover in a circus that had stopped at three cities, each stop coinciding with a security tech firm being robbed. Cassandra, Rose, and Cassius were all a part of the circus as a person-juggling brother and sisters. It wasn't easy, and his legs were still burning, but his goo, to include the bodysuits he had both girls wearing under their circus costumes, was allowing him to cheat, as he was sure Megan had been to pull off her part of the trapeze act with Robin, and as Connor had been to hurl barrels into the air, including one to catch Robin when he fell and hurl him back into the air for Megan to catch.

"You guys were great!" Megan squealed as the five of them got back.

"Cassius," Cassandra said.

"Yea, he did the hard work," Rose said, she and Cassandra having already given him back his goo.

"Still, it was impressive," Robin said. "I don't think I've ever seen someone juggle two people quite so fast. I've seen the act before, but yours was definitely better."

"Had to put on a good show," Cassius said, then frowned. "You're sweating. You okay?"

"I think I caught that twenty-four-hour bug that's been going around," Robin said.

Cassius nodded. "Give it to me, and I'll make you fight Cassandra."

Robin laughed. "I'll do my best."

"Faraday," a white-haired man in a suit who'd been harassing the ring-leader, who he suspected of orchestrating the thefts, said from behind Cassius, holding out an Interpol badge. "Interpol. New acts?"

"Wait a minute," Cassius said. "Your name is _K__ing_ Faraday?"

"Unfortunately, so," the man said. "Makes for an unpleasant high school career. Back to my question."

"Yeah," Robin nodded. "Just joined the tour."

"Probably clears you," Faraday said. "But don't get too comfortable. Haly's going down for this."

"As you command, your majesty," Cassius said, only for Robin's entire group, along with Rose, to smack him in the back of the head.

"Let's go," Robin muttered after a few minutes. "Time for the stakeout."

They all change quickly and headed to the likely target, spreading out around it in small teams.

_"If Interpol is already on this, why are _we_ here?"_ Connor asked.

_"Because Batman said so,"_ Robin said. _"Why, you had something better to do?"_

_"Cool it Batman Jr.," _Cassius said. _"It's a fair question."_

_"How do we know the thieves will hit here?"_ Artemis asked.

_"There _are_ more obvious targets,"_ Red Arrow agreed.

_"And Faraday'll have them covered,"_ Robin said, sounding out of breath even through the telepathic link. _"But I've analyzed the tech already stolen and the pattern suggests this is the place."_

_"How're you feeling?" _Megan asked.

_"Lousy, actually,"_ Robin said. _"But I'll manage."_

_"You sound worn out even telepathically,"_ Cassius said. _"You can sit this out if you want. We can handle the fighting."_

_"No," _Robin said flatly.

_"Contact, north east quadrant,"_ Connor reported.

The person sprinted to a gate and ran up one of the poles on it before flipping over the top of it.

_"Wow,"_ Cassius said. _"Spry."_

_"Well, looks like we know why Carlo missed their performance,"_ Superboy said, referring to one of the usual pair that Robin's group had replaced as the main event.

_"Could be Carlo," _Robin said. _"Could be his brother. Keep an open mind and move in."_

He and Megan went in instantly and Cassius nodded to Cassandra. She returned the nod before following Cassius down, Rose just behind them. However, as they reached the ground, Connor landed loudly beside them, forgoing all notion of stealth as he used his x-ray vision to look around.

_"Did you see where he went?" _Robin asked.

"The warehouse," Superboy finally said.

As they moved to go after him, Cassandra tapped Cassius on the side.

"Connor's really angry all of a sudden,"Cassandra signed.

"I'm sure he's fine," Cassius said. "But thanks for the heads up."

Cassandra nodded and they slipped into the warehouse, gathering on a catwalk above where the thief was stealing tech from a crate. Robin laughed to announce their presence.

"Caught red-handed," Robin said. "Red-faced, too, I'll bet."

_"Should have greeted him by restraining him,"_ Cassius said.

"Acrobatics won't get you out of this," Artemis said.

The man began to turn, reaching for something, and Rose shrieked in fear, grabbing Cassius and leaping away instantly. A moment later, the man pulled out a flare, lighting it as he turned, and blew a massive jet of flame up at all of them, sweeping the flames along the catwalk and forcing everyone but Connor to flee. Cassius's eyes widened. She had known. Somehow, even before there was any indication of what was coming, she had known. As the two of them stood, another memory played. Rose shrieking for him to run, then shoving him. Then after she'd pushed him out of the way, a ship flipping and firing down at where he'd been, killing her instead.

As the flames ended, Red Arrow leaned out, drawing his bow back, only to stop, staring at a crate off to the side. Cassius looked and his gut dropped as he saw it was marked "LIVE AMMO" with a picture of several bullets above the words. Before he could even consider fleeing, Cassandra, having also seen the crate, grabbed both he and Rose and sent her grappling gun out through a window to a building across from them, launching them out the window. A moment later, the ammo exploded, every window exploded outward, flames raging from inside. As it did, a bullet from one of the crates punched through Cassandra's side, but she made no reaction, swinging the three of them up to a roof beside the building and setting them down.

"Okay?" Cassandra asked.

"I'm fine," Cassius said. "You're hurt."

Cassandra shook her head and signed, "It's shallow and didn't hit anything. I've got three hours before it becomes a problem."

Cassius shook his head. "Here. At least let me stop the bleeding."

He used his goo to pack the entry and exit wounds, again with Cassandra not batting an eyelash, then stood and turned to the building as Connor ran out of the building with Megan, then Artemis and Red Arrow with Robin a few moments later. Cassandra and Rose headed down to meet them and Cassius flew around the building once with a pair of goo wings before joining them.

"The thief?" Robin asked, being supported by the archers.

Cassius shook his head. "Gone."

"Way to ditch the team in there you three," Red Arrow spat. "Way to show your true colors."

"Yeah, and my colors happen to be flammable," Cassius said. "Which you already know. Don't try and act like we betrayed you. Cassandra reacted to a threat and got us outside before the explosion could potentially kill us."

"What a perfect excuse for being a coward," Red Arrow said.

"Enough," Robin said. "Cassius is right. The three of them did nothing wrong by getting clear of an explosion the rest of us were too slow to escape from. remember Aqualad's warning about you tearing the Team's cohesion apart, Red Arrow. All three of them have proven themselves loyal, capable, and dependable several times over. Let's head back to the circus before we get caught being out of bed."

They all nodded and headed back to the circus. Once they were there, Cassius and Cassandra headed to the room on the train they were sharing between the two of them and Rose, and Cassandra and Rose took their hero costumes off, Rose putting on pajamas Cassandra simply sat on the bed so Cassius could treat her bullet wound. Cassius rolled his eyes.

"You know, you could at least put on underwear first," Cassius signed.

"Why?" she signed back.

"You know why," he said, giving her a knowing look before returning his focus to his work.

"I don't care if people see me," Cassandra signed. "I've got nothing I want to hide."

"It's not about that," Cassius said, snipping the end of the thread after stitching both holes, then pressing a bandage pad to her wound in front and back, Rose holding them in place while he wrapped bandages around her. "It's inappropriate and you know it. I've told you that several times."

Cassandra shrugged noncommittally, and he sighed, securing the end of the bandages.

"Get dressed," he said.

She stood, hugging him, then quickly pulled pajamas on.

_"Megan, are we discussing things tonight, or tomorrow?"_ Cassius asked, able to feel the lingering connection she kept as an emergency communication line on missions, even if she wasn't actively listening to their thoughts.

_"Tomorrow,"_ Megan responded.

_"Alright,"_ Cassius said. _"Good night then."_

_"Good night,"_ Megan said cheerfully.

He climbed into the bed, both girls snuggling into his sides before closing their eyes. Before they could fall asleep, however, he gave Rose a light squeeze, making her look up at him.

"How'd you know to get me out of the way?" Cassius asked. "How'd you know he'd use fire?"

Rose frowned for a moment before speaking. "I saw it. I don't know how, but I saw him breathe fire before he did."

"You saw me get blasted during the training exercise too, didn't you?" Cassius asked. "That was how you knew to tackle me and how you were able to save me."

She nodded. "I don't mean it literally. More like...I saw it happen in my mind, even while I was seeing what was happening. I just...sort of new it would happen."

He nodded. "If you can figure out how to control that, you might be as good a fighter as Cassandra is."

Cassandra nodded in agreement.

Rose smiled and shrugged. "Maybe. So far, it's only happened three times."

"Wait, three?" Cassius asked.

"I saw Cassy get shot defending the thug before she did, too, but I was too far away to do anything that time," Rose said. "And I also only saw it happen about a half-second early."

Cassius nodded. "Seems like it activates when someone you care about is in danger."

Rose nodded. "I'm glad it's activated when it has. That fire tonight would have hit you directly."

"I know," Cassius nodded. "You saved my life."

She smiled and nodded, then cuddled back into his side, Cassandra doing the same. Cassius smiled, squeezing both gently, and closed his eyes, only to be brought back to reality about three seconds before being fully asleep when he heard Cassandra whimper and felt her curl into him. He squeezed her gently and she stilled before letting out a shuddering breath and holding him tighter still. He responded in kind and a half-hour later, she drifted off to sleep again, Cassius following shortly after.

* * *

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	37. Chapter 37

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Parasite

Cassius shoved hard with his legs, Cassandra doing the same, her feet pushing off of his and sending her into the air before she shoved her arms upward as Rose, standing on her hands, jumped, sending Rose high into the air, both girls, with a little help from Cassius's goo, pulling several flips before Cassius caught Cassandra with his feet on her back and pushed her away, allowing her to land lightly on her feet, then did the same to Rose a moment later. The three of them bowed to the audience, then left, Haly returning to close out the show before they began to pack up. As they were, Cassius looked to Cassandra, who was staring at a tall, muscular blonde who was offering to help Megan load up.

"What's up?" Cassius asked.

"His body language is weird," Cassandra signed.

"Weird how?" Cassius asked.

"It changed when his hand brushed Megan's when he tried to take her bag," Cassandra signed.

"Changed how much?" Cassius signed.

"Almost completely," Cassandra signed. "And his micro-expressions said he was surprised, then pleased, then something like confident but bad."

"Smug?" Cassius signed.

"Kind of," Cassandra said. "Like he knows a secret."

Cassius's eyes widened, and he signed, "Megan's secret?"

"Maybe," Cassandra signed.

He nodded and loaded the last of his things before twirling a finger at Robin while curling his lips in on themselves, signaling him to gather the others without telepathy. Robin nodded just as Haly called out for everyone to load up, seeming to be in a rush. After a few minutes, the group was all in Robin's room, and Megan was laying down, having started to feel nauseous. Cassius quickly explained to them what Cassandra had told him about the blond guy's body language.

"Are there any villains you can think of who can steal someone's abilities, or maybe copy them, by touch?" Cassius asked.

"Wait a minute," Red Arrow said. "We're assuming that's what's going on based off of a nine year old mute girl _saying_ that someone's body language changed? News flash! Body language changes! That's what it does!"

"Oh, do _not_ act like you don't know about Cassandra's ability," Cassius said. "And not yes, she _said_ it changed. She knows American Sign Language."

Red Arrow scoffed. "You're right. I _do_ know what her ability is. Complete bullshit."

Cassius laughed as Cassandra glared at Red Arrow. "Oh, I can _not_ wait for the three of us to be there during combat training with you. I would _love_ to see you try and test your theory."

"What, not man enough to fight me yourself?" Red Arrow asked. "You have to send a little girl to fight your battles?"

"Oh, trust me, I'll be fighting you, too," Cassius said. "But before I break every bone in your body, Cassandra gets first crack at you."

"Well, I should probably warn you, I'm not above hitting a little girl," Red Arrow said.

Cassius snorted derisively. "Oh, don't worry. You won't."

"What was that?" Red arrow snarled.

"I said you won't be hitting a little girl when you spar against Cassandra," Cassius said. "Before you can even think about hitting this little girl, she's going to make you _feel_ like a little girl."

Red Arrow's hand flashed toward a knife, only for Cassandra's hand to grab it a half-second before he could grab it, twisting and slamming him to the ground in an arm bar.

"What the fuck!?" Robin demanded.

Cassandra looked up at Cassius and nodded.

"Megan, connect us," Cassius said. "Even her."

Megan did as instructed and their minds were instantly flooded with Cassandra's thoughts. They all watched with Cassandra's level of attention as the muscles in Red Arrow's arm and chest flexed as his eyes narrowed, signaling an attack, then his hand angled to grab his knife, betraying his weapon, and lastly his eyes flicked down to Cassius's neck, betraying his target. The others all cringed as the images and knowledge all appearing in the blink of an eye strained their minds and gave them a headache, but before Megan closed the connection to end the flood of images, Cassius saw the muscles along the back of Red Arrow's arm and in his forearms tense in preparation of stopping his slash short, meaning to prove a point, not kill him. Then, the connection closed and Cassandra took a deep breath to calm herself after having someone in her mind again after the torture she went through thanks to Cain.

"It's alright, Cassandra," Cassius said. "Go ahead and let him up."

She nodded and released him and he stood, bending and straightening his elbow.

"You were trying to kill a fellow teammate?" Robin snarled.

"No," Cassius said. "You all closed your minds off before the last of it, due to the strain, but I'm more used to pain so I was able to watch," Cassius said. "He was going to stop at the last second. He wanted to prove a point about Cassandra's ability being fake. Or he wanted to scare me. Either way, slashing my throat won't kill me. At least, not necessarily."

"What?" Connor asked. "How?"

"I can separate my head from my shoulders at will if I feel so inclined," Cassius said.

"Cool," Megan said.

"Just proves how much of a freak you are," Red Arrow said.

"Enough!" Robin snapped. "This is your last warning, Speedy! You may not trust anyone on this team, but if you continue to harass them and make things hard for this team, you're gone. As it is, I'm going to give both Batman and Aqualad a _very_ detailed report on your behavior during this mission."

"Robin," Cassius said. "The villain. Anyone specific come to mind?"

Robin glanced at him, frowning, then nodded. "One. Parasite."

Cassius nodded. "We should go and find out big blond friend."

They all nodded and left the room, including Megan, against Robin's advice. As they were walking along the train, they met Haly.

"Dan, you're looking better," Haly smiled at Robin, using his cover name.

"Feeling better," Robin smiled. "How long has Ray been in your show?"

"Ray?" Haly asked. "I think he joined right at the start of the European tour."

"I see," Robin nodded. "Well, maybe he's picked up a couple tricks for the nerves. Thanks, Haly."

"No problem," Haly smiled.

They all turned to walk as Cassandra bumped her shoulder into Cassius's arm. Cassius responded by nudging the back of Robin's foot on his next step. Robin cleared his throat softly, and Megan stopped, leaning on the wall and groaning, holding a hand to her head and looking back.

"Clear," Megan said, pushing off the wall.

"You're sure it was him?" Cassius asked.

"Same body language," Cassandra signed.

"Robin, go check Haly's room," Cassius said. "He's probably tied up. We'll search the train."

"He has all of Megan's powers," Connor said as Robin ran off. "He can be anyone."

"That's why I'm going to be with Cassandra," Cassius said. "The next time she reads his body language, she and I will start a fight that you won't be able to miss. On the other hand, Megan can read his mind, and Connor can hear a change in someone's heartbeat when they get nervous. Each of you take an archer for backup in case you find him."

"Actually, I haven't been able to get it working," Megan said. "It's been getting harder since I got sick, but after using it on Cassandra earlier, I've had nothing."

"Then we know Robin's right," Cassius said. "Parasite absorbs powers. Okay. Megan and Connor stick together. Can we trust the archers to get along for this?"

"For now," Red Arrow said.

"Good," Cassius said. "Let's go Cassy. Rose, go meet up with Robin."

Rose nodded and ran along the train the way Robin had gone. As she did, the others all scattered along the train. After a few minutes, they stopped as they found Megan leaning on the wall, panting and sweating. A moment later, there were several crashes form the next car.

"Connor!" Megan gasped.

"I got him," Connor said. "But he's onto me. Exiting the dining car now."

"Roof," Cassius said, he and Cassandra both going out a window and climbing to the roof, Cassius using his goo and Cassandra using a flip that would put Robin's acrobatics to shame.

As soon as they arrived, Cassius spotted their thief, currently a tall, broad-shouldered man with thin arms and legs dressed in a blue leotard with puffy purple shoulders, white sleeves with black stripes wrapping around them at regular intervals, black pants, and black makeup for most of his head with white on the face, reminding Cassius of a mime, but with several blue markings. Just as they arrived, he stopped and Connor jumped up behind him.

"He's on the roof," Cassius reported, Cassandra tapping his arm.

"He's angry again," Cassandra signed.

Cassius glanced at Connor and saw the glare he had directed at the thief. He nodded.

"I'll go in first," Cassius said quietly. "Be ready to back me up."

Cassandra nodded just as the thief used telekinesis to hurl Connor off the train, only for Connor to catch himself with flight and return to the train. Cassius's eyes narrowed before he shot forward. Parasite turned toward him, only for Cassius's goo-coated fist to explode into his head, hurling him backward a full car's length where he bounced to the car behind that one. He rolled to a stop and stood just as Robin jumped up onto the train beside Cassius.

"Be careful!" Robin said. "He once stole Superman's powers! He can steal anyone's!"

"Debatable," Cassius said. "If he doesn't start flinging goo at us, he can't absorb my powers through my goo."

"Good," Connor said.

"I suppose I'll have to get serious," Parasite said, leaning back before his head turned a dark purple, blockier, and his grin grew wide.

"Stay out of his reach," Robin warned as Cassius and Connor walked toward him slowly. "There's no flu going around. The weakness comes when he makes physical contact and absorbs your powers."

"Or abilities," Cassius said.

"I _have_ been a bit of a glutton today," Parasite smirked. "Chowed down on the skills of nearly every loser in this troupe. But oh my. The pièce de résistance was Dawn Danger, or whatever her real name is." He grinned as Megan climbed up onto the train as well, followed by Rose, then Artemis and Red Arrow behind Cassandra. "Thought I'd munch on her trapeze skills. Imagine my surprise when she tasted like Martian Manhunter instead. Mmm. She made a lovely appetizer. Guess who I want for my entrée."

He swung his hand up and Cassius turned to catch Connor, only to go flying backward himself. Bad move. He smirked and flipped backward, encasing himself in goo just before Rose hurled a bolo under him. Parasite's eyes narrowed and he released his grip Cassius, stopping the bolo instead. Then, Cassius flipped over Parasite, slamming a roundhouse kick to the back of his head. He shot forward, crashing into the bolo, which wrapped around him instantly, electricity flying over his body as he shouted in pain, then slammed into Connor, hard. Cassius swore as both crashed to the ground, Parasite bouncing away.

"Nice going, Void!" Red Arrow snapped.

"My bad," Cassius said.

"Now _that_ is the full-bodied Kryptonian flavor I love!" Parasite grinned, standing and lifting his arms, breaking the bolo off of himself instantly.

"Everybody, stay whelmed!" Robin said.

"I'll take point," Cassius said, forming goo over his entire body. "I don't think he can absorb my powers through my goo, and with it, I can still handle his strength."

The others nodded and Connor retreated past Cassius. Parasite grinned, crouching. However, a moment later, he leaned backward, and Cassandra leapt backward, the archers following. Parasite began to turn and Cassius's arms shot forward, only for Parasite to flip over them and yank Cassius to himself with Megan's telekinesis, then drill a punch into his face, launching him back into the train, smashing him through the top of it. As he jumped up to the roof of the train again, Parasite looked over at Artemis and Red Arrow as they drew back a pair of pointed arrows, lasers flashing from his eyes and incinerating their weapons instantly.

Parasite laughed. "I almost never say this, but I'm sated. Hate to eat and run..."

He took off, pulling a luggage case with him, only for Cassius's goo arm to catch the case, holding it immobile. Parasite spun just as Robin flipped up off Cassius's arm to the case, then leapt at Parasite.

"Sorry," Parasite said, backhanding Robin. "No hitchhikers."

"I'm sorry too!" Cassius said, bursting out of his goo hand, reclaiming all of the goo. "This is a no-fly zone!"

He smashed his expanded, clasped hands down on his head, blasting him down into the roof of the dining car just beside where Cassius had smashed through it. Parasite exploded through the roof instantly, then burst back out of it just in time for Cassius's fist to crash into his face again. Then, as Cassius moved to fight him more, he exploded up through the roof behind Cassandra, grabbing her by the throat and streaking into the air. Cassius leapt up to the roof but stopped. Parasite smirked, holding his arm out, floating the case up to himself.

"I'm going to throw her, and you'll be able to choose either catching me, or catching her," he smirked, then hurled her away from the train just as the train reached a bridge.

Robin had landed on the edge of the train and everyone but Conner was trying to pull him up. Connor had collapsed on the ground after being drained, which meant that there was no one to go after Parasite, or even able to, when Cassius took off to catch Cassandra. He flipped just shy of the water, catching her against his chest in a mass of goo, preventing her from being hurt in the impact. He arced back into the air before slowing to a stop, retracting the goo from around her and sighing in relief when she tightened her hold on him.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

She nodded. "Sorry."

"Don't be," Cassius said. "He was basically a Martian Superman. He had us beat from the beginning. I'm just glad I was able to catch you."

She squeezed him for a moment before he flew back to the train, landing with the others.

"He took more power than you even have," Robin was saying. "Heat Vision?"

"I have the genetic potential for it," Connor said. "Must have been enough for him."

"All of you head inside," Cassius said. "I need to talk with Connor for a minute."

The others all nodded and when Megan glanced at Connor, he nodded. Cassius waited until they were gone before turning to Connor.

"Show it to me," Cassius said.

"What?" Connor asked.

"Whatever it is that you used to give yourself your full Kryptonian power, and that also makes you angry," Cassius said.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Connor growled, turning to leave, only for Cassius to catch his arm. "Get off of me!" He moved to push Cassius's arm away, only for it to go nowhere.

"You aren't strong enough to get away from this conversation right now," Cassius said. "Now, I'm going to give you one more chance. Show me, or I'll bring the matter to Robin."

Connor's eyes widened. "Why would that matter?"

"Firstly, because you flat-out lied to Robin about why Parasite got the full list of powers," Cassius said. "And secondly, because Cassandra's not the only one who can read body language. As soon as I mentioned telling Robin, your eyes widened in surprise and fear. You don't want him to know, which means whatever it is, you didn't get it from a hero. If it's got to do with you using your full Kryptonian powers, I'd guess it was Lex Luthor. So, show me, or we'll see if Robin agrees with my assessment."

Connor swallowed hard before pulling his vest's right side away. "They're called Shields. They suppress...the human side of my DNA, allowing me to use my full power, but also making me angry." He pulled the black shield off of his chest, then tossed it aside as he batted Cassius's hand aside. "And he only drained the Shield, not me."

Cassius nodded. "Alright. Now, let's go show the others your miraculous recovery."

Connor nodded and they headed inside, reaching the others just as they were getting ready to leave for Geneva, Red Arrow with a full-size bow as a spare and Artemis with a crossbow. Once they'd all gathered their things and changed into their hero costumes, they all left the train, Cassius flying the Bio-Ship for them.

* * *

Cassius sighed, resting his face in his hand as Connor roared in rage, smashing through the door between them and Parasite.

"Seconds?" Parasite smirked. "No, I couldn't possibly."

He pulled Connor toward him again, but Connor drilled a punch into his face. Then, when he leapt at him, Parasite drilled a punch of his own into Connor, hurling him back. Then, he used telekinesis to fling him around the room several times before dragging him back again, draining him again.

"How do you do it kid?" Parasite asked. "Even Superman never recharged this fast."

Just then, the blackhole beginning to form over the building they were in began to suck things in, lightning flashing from it rapidly. Then, Cassius reached them, knocking Parasite's arm off of Connor's throat before drilling his own fist into Parasite's face, launching him backward into the wall. He stood, chuckling.

"Alright Dangers, come on out," parasite chuckled.

"Sorry, Parasite," Cassius snarled, his voice deep and distorted in his entirely goo form. "Just me this time. No more interruptions, no more hostages. This time, we're going to play fair!"

He exploded forward and ducked under Parasite's fist, slamming an left uppercut into his jaw, then a right hook. Then, he spun clockwise, his right foot flashing up into a windmill kick, sending him exploding backward through the wall, bouncing away. Cassius walked after him, forming himself goo horns, draconic wings, and a tail as he walked, making Parasite's eyes widen in surprise and fear. Then, both exploded forward. Cassius's right forearm compressed like a spring, then extended again as they swung, his fist exploding into Parasite's, the added force about equaling a normal Kryptonian's power. However, Parasite now had a double-dose of Kryptonian strength, making him twice as strong as Superboy was with his Shields. As a result, Cassius shot backward, bouncing once before flipping and landing on his feet.

Parasite began to laugh. "Not bad, Void. You have an impressive amount of strength. However, I've got a double-dose of Kryptonian power. You've got nothing on me."

"We'll see," Cassius said.

Parasite spread his arms invitingly, smirking knowingly. Cassius exploded forward, drilling a punch into Parasite's face, sending him stumbling backward. He stepped forward, punching back at Cassius, but Cassius ducked under the punch. He smirked as Parasite threw a knee at him and leapt forward, pushing off his knee to flip and grabbing him under the jaw before flipping down behind him. Then, he hurled him away. Parasite flipped, smirking, and moved to charge again, only for Megan to step up behind him, kicking his feet out from under him. He flipped, crashing to the ground hard, just in time for a crossbow bolt to explode into a cloud of white fumes around the two of them. Then, Cassius's goo arms shot into the cloud and grabbed Megan, yanking her free of it just before a small metal disk on the underside of Parasite's jaw exploded, igniting the gasses around him, though the blast didn't hurt him at all.

"Did you seriously think that would affect me?" Parasite asked, smirking.

"Not at all," Cassius said. "You're too strong for a small explosive like that to hurt you. However, we had a theory about your powers. First of all, you don't know everything about them, or the weaknesses you get with them. And secondly, the weaknesses you get with them are easily employable. Like the Martian Weakness to fire."

Parasite's eyes widened and he looked down at the flames surrounding him as sweat began to run out of his skin. He looked up at Cassius, who smirked.

"Consider this payback for trying to kill Cassandra," Cassius said. "Burn mother fucker."

Then, he raised a small detonator and pressed the button at the top, a second small metal disk on his jaw opening and spewing a combustible gas, which exploded into a massive fireball instantly.

"Void, what the fuck!?" Red Arrow demanded.

"Chill out," Cassius said. "He's still immune to explosions. The fire's just going to knock him out faster."

In the sea of flames, Parasite was gasping for breath, having already collapsed to his hands and knees. He looked up at Cassius and raised his hand, rage filling his features. Then, his eyes shone green and Cassius lurched forward, only for Rose and Cassandra to both put a grappling hook through his abdomen, holding him in place. Cassius shouted in pain, but after a moment, Parasite collapsed and Red Arrow used a cryo arrow to extinguish the flames as Cassius shot backward to Cassandra and Rose, who removed the grappling hooks carefully.

"Excessive," he said as his abdomen healed.

"You're welcome," Rose smirked, helping him up.

"We'll take it from here," Faraday said, walking over to them.

Cassius looked up through the windows making up most of the walls and smiled, seeing the clear, starry sky, then dropped his gaze back to Parasyte, who was now wearing a collar to suppress his powers. He sighed, leaning against the wall beside the girls as he shifted back to normal, glancing at the others, who were standing around the controls Robin had used to shutdown the black hole generator.

"I want a vacation," Cassius said.

"You'll have to ask Batman," Artemis said.

"Yeah, no thanks," Cassius said. "We all know how that'd go."

Cassandra nodded in agreement, and they walked over to the others.

"I still don't trust you, Void, or those two brats you brought with you," Red Arrow said, then sighed. "But I don't believe there's a mole on this team. You all could have betrayed us at any point during this mission. You've all earned my trust, and Void, Orphan, and Ravager have earned enough to know they're not traitors."

"Don't think this gets you out of our sparring match," Cassius said flatly. "You earned that ass-whooping and shaming, and you're going to receive."

"We'll see about that," Red Arrow said, narrowing his eyes.

"Come on," Robin said. "Let's get back to the Troupe before Haly figures out who we are."

They all nodded and returned, agreeing to stick around for one final show before heading back to the Cave.

* * *

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	38. Chapter 38

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Christmas

Cassius stirred and yawned, tightening his arms around Cassandra. She'd had another nightmare after they got back from stopping Parasite, so Cassius had stayed with her. Now, it was Christmas morning. Not a pleasant time for the three of them in their old lives, but thanks to Cassius regaining his memories, he remembered what it was supposed to feel like, and he knew the others would help. So, He'd also already gotten them both a gift.

Cassius looked down at Cassandra, who was still asleep, curled into his chest. He smiled, reaching up to her shoulder and shaking her gently. "Cassandra. Time to wake up. It's Christmas."

"No," Cassandra said, tucking her face tighter into his chest. "Please."

Cassius squeezed her lightly. "Hey, come on, Cassy. You know I'm not going to do that to you. We're going to do Christmas right. No torture, no shooting, nothing your father used to do."

Cassandra again curled tighter into him.

"Cassandra, do you trust me?" Cassius asked.

She hesitated before nodding against him. He smiled and sat up, pulling her to her feet with him, only for her to tighten her hold. He sighed, pulling her arms out from behind him and sat down, resting his hands on her shoulders, only for her to drop her gaze to the floor, fear lingering behind her eyes. He lifted her chin, making her look at him.

"Cassandra Cain, I swear to you I will not let anyone hurt you," Cassius promised. "And I will never, ever hurt you myself. I'm going to show you what Christmas is supposed to be. We didn't get to do anything special for Christmas Eve, like you're supposed to, but I got everything set up for today. Christmas is supposed to be happy, and I want to show you that. If you'll let me. If you don't want to, we can do what you want for the day. I can ask the others not to do anything special, or we can just stay in bed all day."

Cassandra watched him for a moment before shaking her head. "Yes."

Cassius nodded, and Cassandra stepped forward, hugging him. He smiled, squeezing her lightly.

After a moment, Cassandra pulled back and signed, "Please don't leave me alone today."

"I won't," Cassius said. "But we'll have Rose with us too."

"Yes," Cassandra nodded.

He smiled, giving her a quick hug before standing and stepping past her toward the door, forming himself a pair of slippers in the process. "Come on. Let's go make sure Rose wakes up."

"Just let me grab my towel and clean clothes," Cassandra signed.

"No need," Cassius smiled. "No one gets dressed on Christmas."

Cassandra's eyes widened before she nodded. They headed out into the hallway and Cassandra slipped her hand into his as they walked toward Rose's room. Cassius smiled, giving her hand a light squeeze and she smiled. After a few minutes, they reached Rose's room and Cassius knocked. After a moment, the door opened to reveal Rose, still wearing her orange and black jack-o-lantern pajamas and the white cloth she covered her eye with at night, her hair still a mess.

Rose sighed heavily when she saw it was them. "Alright. What's on the agenda for today?"

"Christmas," Cassius said. "Your first real one."

"Wait, no training?" Rose asked.

"Nope," Cassius said. "Just a full day of celebrating Christmas."

Rose cheered and hugged him before grabbing a pair of orange slippers and putting them on. Then, they headed out to the living room and kitchen where the others were beginning to gather, and where a second Cassius was cooking. He smiled as Cassius walked in with the girls and walked over, Cassius reabsorbing him, then releasing Cassandra's hand to walk into the kitchen. Off to one side, beside the TV, which was already playing old Christmas Classics, was a huge evergreen tree decorated with lights, garland, and glass bulbs, there were presents piled under it, and as the others all sat on the couches, Cassius brought out a mug of hot chocolate for each of them, including both Cassandra and Rose, warning everyone that they were still hot. Then, he returned to the kitchen as the stove began to buzz. Only Wally wasn't present, currently being spending Christmas with his own family.

"What is this, Cassius?" Robin asked. "We didn't have time to set any of this."

"No we did not," Cassius agreed. "Or, at least, you didn't. I, on the other hand, had a clone setting this all up all night."

"With some help from me," Zatanna smirked. "I couldn't let him do something this sweet alone."

"Hey, I can still take that hot chocolate away," Cassius warned jokingly, Zatanna turning her upper body away, sticking her tongue out at him.

Finally, he walked out with two plates piled high with mini cinnamon buns, all bearing a thin layer of icing that coated every inch and guaranteed everyone sticky fingers. He also brought Rose and Cassandra each a smaller plate with a dozen each for them to keep to themselves. Everyone, besides the two former assassins-in-training, Kaldur, and Connor, cheered as soon as they saw the sweets and swarmed them, Cassius returning to the kitchen one last time to grab his own personal plate.

"These are amazing!" Megan cheered.

"I hope so," Cassius said. "It took Zatanna damn-near all night to teach my clone to make them right."

The others laughed and Cassius looked to Cassandra, who had a wide smile on her face and her eyes closed as she ate her sweets, her hot chocolate carefully held with her fingers looped through the handle to also hold the plate. Cassius gave everyone a few minutes to enjoy the sweets before walking over to sit by the tree.

"Everyone ready for presents?" Cassius asked.

Everyone cheered, besides Cassandra and Rose, both of whose gazes fell to the floor, expecting nothing. Cassius smiled, growing a goo hand for each person out of his back and stretched them over to the Christmas stockings Zatanna had prepared for everyone, giving them to them. Everyone, again excluding the same four, cheered as they began to sort through the candy filling the stockings. As they did, Cassius grabbed the three hidden stockings, giving them to Zatanna, Cassandra, and Rose. Cassandra and Rose's faces lit up with surprise, then joy as they saw the candy, and Zatanna smiled appreciatively, until she pulled out the first lump of coal, then scowled at him.

"Very funny," Zatanna said.

"I though you'd enjoy the irony of that joke," Cassius said.

Zatanna frowned before Cassius mimed biting it. She raised an eyebrow and took a bite, only to squeal in surprise and joy. "Chocolate Coal! That's great!"

"Ooo, nice touch!" Robin grinned. "I should have thought of that."

"Hey, why aren't you at home right now?" Cassius asked.

"He's not real big on celebrations," Robin said. "Though, I have to head home tonight, and I'm supposed to bring you all too. And Batman wants to see you three before dinner."

Cassius nodded and turned ate another sweet. "Okay. Now, for the real presents."

He noticed Rose and Cassandra didn't look quite as hopeless this time, and smiled to himself as he passed out the first set of presents.

"Hey, wait, where'd you find that?" Robin asked, staring at the present Megan was holding. "I thought I lost it. Actually, I lost _all_ of the...Zatanna."

"I used magic to bring the wrapped presents everyone got for someone else on the team here," Zatanna smiled.

Everyone began to open their presents, including Cassandra and Rose. As each present was opened, more were passed out until they were all gone. Most of what Cassandra and Rose had gotten was candy, though Rose had gotten a new set of throwing knives that she was particularly excited about, and Rose had gotten several easier books for her to practice reading, once she was a bit better. Everyone gathered around on the couch to eat their candy and watch Christmas movies, except Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose, who headed for Cassius's room so he could get the presents he'd gotten them and had specifically had Zatanna leave in his room, and Robin who went to get a gift he'd neglected to wrap, accidentally making it immune to Zatanna's transportation spell.

Cassius walked into his room, Rose closing it behind them, and sat on his bed, reaching under his pillow, then returning with a pair of small, rectangular, black boxes. Both of their eyes widened as they accepted the one he handed to them, Cassius checking both to make sure they went to the right one. Rose pulled out a black rope necklace bearing a dime-sized gold rose on the front, then a leaf reaching up along the cord with a loop on the underside so that the necklace was attached at three points rather than just the back of the rose itself. Cassandra, on the other hand, pulled out a gold locket about the size of a quarter with her initials engraved in the front in flowing cursive script, and when she opened it, she saw a picture of her father on one side. She looked up at him in confusion.

"I know he wasn't the best father, but he _was_ your father, and despite everything, you love him," Cassius said. "I figured you'd want something to remember him by."

She began to cry instantly and he smiled, pulling her into a hug, Rose joining them a moment later, her necklace hanging around her neck already. He smiled, wrapping an arm around her too, and they stayed like that for a long while before the girls pulled back. When they headed out into the living room again, Zatanna, now wearing a golden locket of her own, though decorated by a magician's hat and a stereo-typical wand with white tips, was in the process of starting to cook a ham, along with Megan and Artemis.

All three girls instantly noticed Cassandra and Rose's necklaces, partially because Cassandra was staring at the picture of her father, and complimented them, both girls smiling brightly before joining the boys on the couch to eat candy and watch movies while Cassius joined the girls in the kitchen, knowing exactly what he was in for.

_"We're linked, girls," _Megan reported, in both of the other girls' minds, as well as Cassius's.

_"What happened to making them change their minds?"_ Zatanna asked.

_"They've never had a Christmas that didn't involve being tortured by their fathers, among others,"_ Cassius said. _"I wanted them to see what it was _supposed _to be like."_

_"Does that 'supposed to' involve mistletoe?"_ Artemis asked, grinning.

_"It better not,"_ Cassius almost growled before catching himself. _"__I'm not going anywhere near any mistletoe."_

_"Good catch," _Zatanna smirked._ "If you don't want them under mistletoe with anyone else, maybe you should just be under it with them instead."_

Cassius rolled his eyes, glancing at the girls and seeing Cassandra look over at him with a small frown. Cassius flashed her a smile and finished glazing the ham in cinnamon and maple syrup, then left the other girls to their work to go and join Cassandra and Rose on the couch.

_"We'll let you know once the mistletoe's in place,"_ Zatanna teased, only for all three girls to receive a mental image of his hand holding up a middle finger.

All three laughed as Cassius felt his end of the connection fade. He settled on the couch between the girls and both instantly leaned on his shoulders, Rose actually pulling his arm around her. Cassius rolled his eyes, smiling and wrapping his other arm around Cassandra as well.

"You three are cute," Robin teased, Cassius stretching a goo arm over to flick his ear, making him and the girls laugh.

They all spent most of the day chatting and watching Christmas movies together, snacking on candy and with those who'd had normal lives telling stories of past Christmases and their families' particular traditions. After a while, they had the ham for lunch, along with more candy and hot chocolate, then a little while later, Wally arrived, taking the time to open his presents for everyone, then passed out the ones he'd gotten everyone. Then, he spent a while sharing his own stories before Robin stood, announcing that he was heading home. Cassius and the girls took their hint and headed to the Zeta tube as well to "go see what Batman wants" before promising to be back in time for Boxing Day cleanup, which he explained to Cassandra and Rose was just the day after Christmas and was mostly just a day to clean up the boxes and wrapping paper and stuff left over from Christmas now.

* * *

"Good, you're all changed," Batman said as the three of them walked into the lounge area where he and Robin were waiting before they headed to the Wayne Family's annual Christmas Ball.

Cassius had gone with a basic tuxedo, though when he saw the much fancier one Dick was wearing, he shifted it into a matching one. Cassandra had on a simple black dress falling to her knees with her locket sitting proudly outside of it, as Rose had her own necklace on the outside of her own white dress, which fell to mid-calf on her right side, her knees on the left, and which he knew full well she'd hidden a pair of knives under, despite him telling her to leave them. She had also swapped her plain black eye patch for a white cloth that covered the upper right side of her face.

"You both look really good," Robin smiled.

Both girls smiled at him and Batman glanced at the door.

"Starting now, the two of you will be using our actual names," Batman said. "To be clear, that means that for tonight, and for tonight only, you'll call me Bruce, and him Richard, or Dick."

Rose grinned instantly.

"Secondly, we'll need a cover story for the three of you," Bruce said. "Which leads me to the main reason I brought you here. Rose, Cassandra, would the two of you be willing to join the Wayne family?"

Both girls' eyes widened instantly.

"What?" Rose asked. "Join the family like...you'd adopt us?"

"That's right," Bruce nodded.

"Wouldn't that tell the entirety of the League of Shadows who you are, and make you a target?" Cassius asked.

"The entirety of the League of Shadows already knows who I am," Batman said. "They simply choose not to attack this house in order to avoid provoking a war against the Justice League."

Cassius nodded. "I suppose that makes sense."

Rose thought for a moment before nodding. "Can I keep my name?"

Bruce blinked before nodding. "If you want to."

"Good," Rose said. "Because I'm not getting rid of my name until I've stopped my father."

"Cassius?" Cassandra asked.

"No," Bruce said. "He'll be a child I've taken under my wing, but the offer is for the two of you specifically."

Cassandra glanced up at Cassius worriedly.

He smiled and shook his head. "This choice is yours. Whatever you choose, I'll always be here."

Cassandra smiled and nodded, then nodded to Bruce as well.

"Alright," Bruce said. "Then let's go and announce Cassandra Wayne to the public."

"No," Cassandra frowned, then signed, "I want to keep my father's name."

"How about both names," Cassius said, grabbing a blank piece of paper and writing "Cassandra Cain-Wayne" on it. "Like this."

Cassandra cocked her head for a moment before nodding and smiling. "Yes."

"Alright," Bruce nodded. "Then Cassandra Cain-Wayne it is."

He turned, walking toward the door and Dick smiled, holding his arms out.

"Hug for your new brother?" Dick asked.

Cassandra smiled and gave him a hug, Rose doing the same a moment later. Then, they all followed Bruce to the ball room, all of them taking the long way to the ball room so they could come out at the top of the ball room's staircase. As they did, a murmur quickly ran through the guests at the presence of three new faces, one of which happened to be wearing a cloth to cover one eye.

"Thank you all for coming," Bruce said. "Welcome to yet another excuse for the Wayne Family to throw a party."

The crowd laughed, mostly politely.

"As you may have noticed, we have some new faces," Bruce said. "Allow me to introduce Cassius, who will be staying with us for the foreseeable future, and my two new daughters, Rose Wilson, and Cassandra Cain-Wayne."

Cheers rang out through the room both girls faces darkening slightly at the attention, and Cassandra took a half-step back and to the side to partially hide behind Cassius, who smiled and took her hand to calm her. They headed down to join the ball after a few minutes and After a few minutes, Cassius began to dance with Cassandra, who picked it up quickly, while Dick began to dance with Rose. After a couple songs, Rose cleared her throat as Cassius and Cassandra were passing her.

"Cassius, get me away from this dick," Rose said, grinning as Dick rolled his eyes.

"Alright," Cassius smiled. "Dick, time to switch."

Dick smiled and when they began to pass again, then spun around each other seamlessly, swapping partners and beginning to twirl away from each other again.

"Better?" Cassius asked.

"Much," Rose smiled happily before it softened into a more sincere, meaningful smile. "Thank you so much for making today special. I couldn't have asked for a better Christmas."

Cassius smiled, squeezing her with the arm around her waist for a moment before refocusing on their dance. Eventually, he swapped back with Dick, Cassandra smiling gratefully. Then, a few songs later, the four of them retreated to a small sitting room off to the side, separated from the ball room by a curtain, when Cassandra and Rose finally got tired of the flashing cameras. As they reached the room, Cassius sat on a couch and Cassandra sat in his lap, wrapping her arms around him as he wrapped his arms around her too. Rose sat beside them, beginning to pester Dick about what it was like to live in the Wayne family.

"So, Cassandra," Cassius said. "Did you like your first real Christmas?"

Cassandra smiled widely and nodded, then signed, "Did you know Bruce wanted to adopt me?"

"No," Cassius smiled, shaking his head. "That was as much a surprise for me as it was for you. He just had to one-up me."

Cassandra shook her head, signing, "I liked this morning better. Besides, I wouldn't have accepted if you weren't going to stay too."

Cassius smiled, squeezing her gently, then sighed. "I'll always be here for you."

Cassandra smiled, Rose leaning on his shoulder as well. Cassius wrapped an arm around her, and when Dick grinned knowingly at him, he flipped him off with the arm around Rose. Dick's grin simply grew, so Rose kicked him for Cassius. A little while later, they rejoined the party for a while before all leaving and heading back to their rooms for the night, except Cassius, who Cassandra pulled to her own, Cassius agreeing to stay with her so that she wouldn't have any nightmares.

* * *

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	39. Chapter 39

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Ambush

Cassius sighed as he and the others stepped out of the Cave's Zeta tube. It had been days since Christmas. Bruce had gotten the paperwork for the adoptions done the first day, but the three of them had stuck around to make a show of living there, though neither was enrolled in a school, Bruce using the excuse of having teachers come to the school to teach the three of them personally, Cassius using his shapeshifting to impersonate the supposed teachers, being careful not to say anything to the press. Ever. Finally, they'd been cleared to return to the Cave to spend the night and watch the Justice League officially induct several new members in the morning.

As they stepped into the briefing room, Cassius grinned as he saw Connor and Kaldur sparring, Red Arrow standing on the opposite side. As Superboy lost the match, Cassandra stepped into the ring, pointing at Red Arrow. Connor and Kaldur both left the ring and Red Arrow stepped into it.

"I have been waiting _so long_ to watch this," Cassius grinned.

"I'm not going easy on you just because you're a little girl," Red Arrow warned.

"No," Cassandra said flatly, adopting her beginning stance.

Cassius started the match and Red Arrow lunged, throwing a kick, only for Cassandra to duck under it while also slamming a kick into his support leg's shin, sweeping it out from under him and dropping him to the ground. He pushed himself up instantly and stepped forward, throwing several punches before Cassandra suddenly stepped forward, slipping her right leg behind his, then back between them before punching, so that when he moved to shift his legs as he blocked her punch, he tripped, falling backward and allowing her to drop to one knee, holding a batarang to his throat. He narrowed his eyes and she moved the batarang so that he could roll away from her, then stood, putting it away. Then, she charged. He moved to punch, so she ducked and he threw a knee. Cassius grinned. Game, set, match. A moment later, Red Arrow crashed to the ground, bouncing and rolling away from Cassandra's favorite throw. As Red Arrow stood, he glared at Cassius.

"Of course you taught her that," Red Arrow said.

"Don't look at me," Cassius said. "I learned that throw from her using it on me. Don't be a sore loser. You lost fair and square. But that's okay, because now it's my turn."

Red Arrow narrowed his eyes and walked into the ring again as Cassandra stepped out of is and Cassius replaced her. Kaldur started the match and Red Arrow instantly charged, throwing a punch. Cassius leaned out of the way of the punch, drilling his own into Red Arrow's gut. Red Arrow caught his arm, however, turning to slam Cassius to the ground, only for Cassius to jump, wrapping Red Arrow across the front of his torso and face, flipping and slamming Red Arrow to the ground and yanking his right arm outward as he lifted his hips, putting pressure upward on Red Arrow's elbow. Red Arrow shouted in pain and slapped his hand on the ground, and Cassius released him, both standing. As soon as they were, however, Red Arrow mule-kicked, snapping Cassius's leg backward. Cassius shouted in pain just as Red Arrow crashed headlong into his gut, lifting him, then slamming him back down. Kaldur reached out to stop the match instantly.

"Leave it!" Cassius snapped, allowing Red Arrow to punch him across the face twice while his knee healed, then yanked his head to the side.

Red Arrow shouted in pain as his fist hit the floor instead of Cassius's face, then Cassius grabbed him by the shirt, yanking him down into a headbutt before yanking him to the side and spinning, catching Red Arrow's right arm again and quickly getting him in the same arm lock before Red Arrow could stop him. Once Red Arrow had tapped and both stood, Red Arrow glared at him.

"Do you even know any other techniques?" Red Arrow asked.

"Come and see," Cassius smirked.

Red Arrow charged, but Cassius lunged low, planting his hands on the ground just in time for Red Arrow's shins to hit his shoulders, then shoved off the ground, standing and throwing Red Arrow to the floor. Red Arrow flipped back to his feet and lunged, throwing a punch, only for Cassius to catch it and spin, using one of the throws Black Canary taught them to fling Red Arrow across the sparring ring. Red Arrow stood instantly and readied himself, just in time for Cassius to charge instead. Red Arrow moved to meet him and Cassius jumped, flipping backward and kicking Red Arrow's punch upward with one hand before the other caught Red Arrow under the chin, flipping him backward and dropping him onto the ground in a groaning heap.

"That enough techniques for you, or would you like to see a few more?" Cassius asked.

Red Arrow slowly began to stand, glaring at Cassius for a moment before turning away and slinking off to sulk. Cassius smirked and nodded approvingly.

"That was more fun than I thought it'd be," Cassius said.

"You should not antagonize him," Kaldur said.

"I didn't antagonize anyone," Cassius said. "He got mad that he lost to Cassandra just like I warned him he would, then he got mad I was winning and broke my knee."

Kaldur sighed. "I suppose so. Training is finished for tonight. The announcement is at nine o'clock tomorrow."

"We'll be up by then," Cassius promised.

Kaldur nodded and turned to Rose and Cassandra. "I understand congratulations are in order."

"Thank you," Rose smiled, Cassandra nodding.

Kaldur smiled and nodded and walked away, Cassius and the others heading to bed as well.

* * *

Cassius watched as Superman gave his speech. Cassius agreed with most of the new members. The only one he disagreed with was Red Arrow. He wasn't ready. He was too angry, and too against working with anyone. However, the choice had been made, and there was nothing he could do about it. He could say plenty, but the League didn't care. They were the ones who got to vote on it. And, unsurprisingly, they had _not_ voted in favor of allowing him to join, though it apparently wasn't a unanimous decision. Apparently Black Canary had voted in favor, and Wonder Woman and Captain Atom had both done the same, and had made the argument that he'd fought roughly on level with them against the man at Ice Fortress five, even when he was facing all three together and throwing both of the full-fledged League members around like it was easy. However, in the end, he'd been rejected, which he was happy about. He'd much rather be on the Team with Cassandra and Rose than be on the League without them. He honestly didn't really care about being on the League at all, if he was honest.

He looked around the Hall of Justice room they were in at the others. He was seated off to the side with Cassandra in his lap and Rose beside them, metal shutter blocking off the window press could see through in order to keep any press who snuck in to get a picture of the sidekicks from recognizing them from their pictures as the new members of the Wayne family that were still all over the internet and every magazine. The others were all in civilian clothes, Robin using sunglasses to hide his identity, as always. There was also a new member on the team. Rocket. She had a belt that controlled pure energy to grant her the ability to fly by surrounding herself in a violet-colored aura, create energy bubbles that got harder as kinetic force was applied to them, and enhanced her strength, though he wasn't sure by how much.

"You know, I was the one who convinced Icon to become a hero in the first place," Rocket said. "I should be outside celebrating with him, not hidden away in here."

"Welcome to our world," Kaldur smiled, then turned back to the TV.

"Well, I suppose there's an upside, too," Rocket said, staring at Kaldur.

Cassius looked back at the screen as Green Arrow gave Red Arrow his membership card, something that was largely ceremonial, given the computers scanned DNA and faces, rather than cards, and was a stupid idea, in Cassius's opinion.

"Way to go Roy!" Wally cheered, raising a fist.

"At last, he has his wish," Kaldur said.

"First of us to make it," Robin smirked. "No one'll call him a sidekick anymore."

"I will," Cassius volunteered. "Someone's gotta keep his ego in check."

"Wait!" Rocket said. "Since when is being a sidekick a bad thing? You sidekicks were my inspiration."

"Well, see, six months ago, it-" He was interrupted by a shrill beeping. He raised his watch and tapped it a mini version of his gauntlet's screen appearing over it.

"Six months ago, they had no trust, respect, and were supposed to be proud that they went from not being let into the Hall of Justice, to being allowed to wait in this room while the adults had their meetings, essentially just moving to the other side of the glass," Cassius said, gesturing at the sealed windows. "Right now, we have them closed, obviously, because I'm a little camera shy. Former assassin extraordinaire, and all that."

"A former what now?" Rocket asked.

"He is Void," Kaldur said. "A former member of the League of Shadows, and one of their most dangerous assassins."

"And one of the best at my job, even if I wasn't as great a fighter as they wanted me to believe, based on my last...meeting, with them."

Cassandra's arms tightened around him, and he sighed, giving her a light squeeze.

"Now see, that's crazy," Rocket said. "You trust him?"

"He has proven himself time and again," Kaldur said.

"Yeah, he's on our side, no question," Wally said.

"We gotta go!" Robin said.

"Thank God," Cassius said as Cassandra let him up. "Press conferences are boring!"

They all headed to the Zeta tube and headed to the Cave to grab their gear and change, then took the Bio-Ship out to go on their mission. As they flew, Robin filled them in. Cheshire had been seen carrying a metal briefcase with a round screen on the front. Robin pulled up a close-up of Cheshire's face, without the mask, and Artemis agreed that it was her, then also identified the case as the one she'd seen on the mission she'd tried to handle alone. However, when Rocket asked about it, Wally made it a point to stress that the fact that they couldn't get it was Artemis's fault.

"Approaching Cheshire's jet," Megan announced, only for them all to stare at the wreckage the jet had been left at following an obvious crash, Artemis having to look away. "Looks like there were no survivors."

"Don't be so sure," Cassius said. "Cheshire's not exactly easy to bring down, right?"

"That's true," Artemis said.

"Looks like she got brought down pretty effectively this time," Wally said.

"Wally," Robin said flatly.

"We will go down and inspect the wreckage," Kaldur said.

They all nodded and headed to the back of the ship, all but Cassius using lines to lower themselves to the ground, Cassius using a goo strand, dropping much faster than the others, just in case it was a trap, as they'd all agreed he was the hardest to kill. Once they were on the ground, they moved to the wreckage and began to search through it.

"How come Homeland Security and the NTSB aren't all over this?" Wally finally asked.

"Cheshire's ID was a League alert," Robin said, holding the destroyed remains of the jet's black box. "Authorities didn't pick it up, and her jet didn't follow its flight plan. It flew under the radar. Literally. But the Watchtower auto-tracked the jet and recorded the crash."

"Then why isn't the League here?" Rocket asked.

"Because our boy wonder has some mighty hacking skills and arranged to get the alert first," Zatanna smiled as Robin puffed his chest out, grinning proudly.

"And because Cheshire and that case represent _our_ unfinished business," Kaldur added.

Behind him, Connor hurled a broken-off wing he'd been holding. "Where are the bodies?"

"Here's one," Cheshire said from above them on the left suddenly, everyone spinning toward her, seeing her in full costume already. "And it...is...stunning."

"I'd say passable at best," Cassius said.

"How rude," Cheshire said.

"I am flora, not fauna," a voice said from the other side of the ravine they were in, everyone turning. "I am foliage, not trees."

Above them, there were five or six men in white clothes armed with advanced weapons tech that were apparently from the planet Apokolyps, Mammoth, which is what the mutated guy from Santa Prisca had been come to be named, and the Riddler, were all standing at various spots along the cliff face and the top of it.

"What am I?" Riddler finished.

"A corpse, if I have to listen to one more shitty riddle," Cassius growled.

Riddle smirked and snapped his fingers, large antennas with twisted sections at the middle then a head-sized ball on top began to rise from the snow, each about the height of the average adult male. The balls all lit up green suddenly and a massive domed barrier formed around them, though Cassius suspected it continued underground into a sphere. He smirked. They'd just doomed themselves. They had no escape.

"Come on," Riddler smirked. "You can get this. I am shrubbery, not grass! What am I? I..."

"Am bush," Robin growled.

"You are trying to ambush the _wrong_ people," Cassius chuckled. "You all just made the biggest mistake of your lives. You sealed yourself in with a deadly assassin."

"Oh, but they don't have to worry about me," Cheshire said.

"Wasn't talking about you, ugly," Cassius said, forming himself goo arms and claws. "Just say the word." _"I can handle the Apokolyptan weapons below and around Riddler for about a minute without help. Probably break most of them."_

_"Superboy, Mammoth is yours,"_ Aqualad said. _"Go."_

Everyone charged instantly. As soon as they did, Zatanna used a quick spell to cause a snow storm inside the barrier, and everyone tore into the grunts rapidly. Cassius actually had to laugh as he did. There were a lot of them, but with everyone blinded by the storm, he didn't need to worry about fighting all of the weapons at once.

_"Superboy, the pylons!"_ Kaldur instructed.

_"Working on it!"_ Superboy replied.

Cassius grabbed a grunt and spun, slamming him into a red disk heading for him, smashing the disk before sending the grunt bouncing away as Cassandra dropped the one who'd fired the disk. Then, Cassius turned, swiping his arms and sending goo spikes exploding into the pylons before retracting them. Just as the goo finished returning, three grunts armed with spears that fired lasers stepped out of the whiteout, aiming at him, only for him to drop into a puddle of goo, the lasers flashing over him into one who had just fired three disks, which began to electrocute the three of them instead. Cassius stood and formed a third arm, stretching all three forward and smashing his fists down through the disks and into the grunts' heads, knocking them all out. Then, he spun as Cassandra and Rose both screamed, both having been caught by a disk. He shot forward, smashing both disks before spinning, arms extending and whipping around, slamming into the two grunts and sending them flying before he retracted his arms, helping the two to their feet.

_"SB you're...you're flying!"_ Robin suddenly said.

Cassius looked up instantly, just in time to see Connor hurl Mammoth up into the barrier, which zapped and reflected him down into the ground. Connor chased him instantly, streaking after him as he skidded down the side of a slope, back toward the battle. He fired his heat vision at him, missing for a moment and trailing a path along the slope before finally catching up to him, Mammoth shouting in pain. However, when the dust cleared, he had him pinned to the wall while he drilled punches into him so fast the impacts sounded like a machine gun, the cliff face Mammoth was against breaking up more and more. Finally, as Connor roared in rage, the cliff shattered, beginning to crumble.

Cassius turned away from it as several grunts began to fire at him, Cassandra, and Rose, forcing them to dodge around the blasts and charge, all three taking them down, only for three more to move to blast them, only for Wally to drop all three. Cassius glanced back at the cliff just in time to see Cheshire tackle Artemis out of the way of the debris. Cassius moved to check on Artemis, and catch Cheshire, only for a small cloud of snow to blow past and leave Artemis alone as it cleared. A moment later, the snow began to fade and Cassius looked around, seeing they had defeated and restrained everyone besides Cheshire, and as an added bonus, Artemis pulled the case out of the snow. Cassius sighed. At least they had that going for them.

He turned to the others and Kaldur nodded to him. He turned, firing a goo spike into all of the remaining pylons, disabling the barrier and retracting his goo before they headed back to the Bio-Ship, then to the Cave to get chewed out, again.

* * *

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	40. Chapter 40

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Usual Suspects

Cassius watched Superboy storm away in silence. They'd brought up the mole subject again, based on the fact that they'd been led into a trap, and Rocket had been, understandably, surprised. However, Connor had gotten mad, since he, Megan, and Artemis were the primary suspects, even more so than Cassius, and had begun to leave, only for Kaldur to say that Superboy's actions lately had begun to worry him, pointing out that Connor's fight with Mammoth nearly killed Artemis. However, Superboy had suddenly seemed in pain, holding a hand to his head, then said he had to take care of something and left.

"Did that seem suspicious to anyone else?" Robin asked.

Cassius stared at the ground in thought. He wanted to tell them, but that would just make things worse. Connor had to tell them himself.

"While we have time, does anyone have anything they would like to confess?" Kaldur asked. "Not about being a mole, as I doubt anyone in this room is a mole. Simply any secrets they wish to share."

"I'll go," Robin said, turning to them an pulling his mask off. "I'm sure you all guessed it as soon as Cassandra, Cassius, and Rose showed up at my family's ball, but...I figure it's about time I let you all know. Just don't tell Batman I spilled the beans."

"Who are you?" Rocket asked. "Is you taking your mask off supposed to mean something?"

"You don't watch the news much, or read magazines, do you?" Cassius asked.

"No, why?" Rocket asked.

"My real name is Dick Grayson, and these three are the newest members of the Wayne family," Robin said, gesturing to the other three.

"Oh, so you're rich!" Rocket said, then froze as he eyes widened. "Oh my God! So then, does that mean..."

"Yes, and hush," Cassius said. "Let's see, now. I think I have the next secret. Or, at least, I might as well let Rocket in on the secret. I was a hero before I got captured by the League of Shadows, lost my memory, and got trained as an assassin. As a hero, my moniker was Copycat."

Rocket gaped at him. "_You're_ Copycat!?"

"Yes," Cassius said. "My powers got corrupted somehow and I became living goo. To the point I can do this." He reached up, separating his head from his neck, as he'd done to show Alfred.

Most of the others took a step back in surprise, except Megan, who looked fascinated, Kaldur, who simply raised an eyebrow, and Cassandra, who hugged him as soon as she noticed his mood take a sharp drop through his body language. He reattached his head and hugged her back.

"That's freaky," Rocket said. "Useful, though."

"Sometimes," Cassius said. "Makes it hard to believe I'm still human though."

Cassandra's arms tightened and he smiled, squeezing her back before she stepped back, taking his hand instead.

"And, are you two..." Rocket trailed off.

"No," Cassius said. "I took them from the League of Shadows, where their fathers were torturing them and beating them bloody, calling it training. Ever since then I've been...sort of like their caretaker, except that they end up protecting me almost more often than I protect them."

"_They_ protect _you_?" Rocket asked. "From what?"

"Everyone has a weakness," Cassius said.

Rocket shrugged and nodded.

"I'll go next," Artemis said, then sighed heavily. "I should have said this before, but I was afraid you'd all kick me off the Team. I'm...I'm Sportsmaster's daughter, and Cheshire's sister. That's why I went after Cheshire alone. Not because I was trying to make the mission fail, but I knew that the League, and Red Arrow, doubted me because of my family. And then, my mother begged Batman and Green Arrow to let me on the team, which I only found out the same day Red Arrow joined, so...I felt like a charity case, and a spot-holder for Red Arrow. I thought...I thought if I could stop my family on my own, I'd prove I'm not just a stand-in for Red Arrow, and I'd prove I wasn't a traitor, but I messed up and just made the mission fail, instead." She stopped, swallowing hard, eyes starting to tear up, though she held it back. "I'm sorry."

"You were never a stand-in," Kaldur said.

"Or a charity case," Wally said. "Heck, you saved my life even _before_ you were on the Team. As far as I'm concerned, you've been a part of this team ever since you saved me."

"Thanks," Artemis said, smiling gratefully and wiping her eyes.

"Hey, guys?" Robin said. "Connor just left on Superbike."

"We should follow him," Cassius said. "I don't think he's the mole, in fact, I don't even think there is one, yet, but we _do_ need to follow Connor."

"Why?" Kaldur asked.

"Because Connor struggles with his anger, and for a Kryptonian, anger is addictive because it increases their power," Cassius said.

"Apparently enough to let Connor use his full power," Robin said.

"Yeah, I'm not fighting him when he's angry for a long time," Cassius said.

"Let's go," Kaldur said. "We can continue this discussion on the Bio-Ship."

They all nodded and headed to the hangar, taking the Bio-Ship and leaving, Robin tracking the Superbike. However, after a few minutes, Artemis had Megan stop as her phone began to ring.

"It's my father," Artemis said, answering. "What?" She looked around before her eyes widened and she looked to Megan and pointed to her head. _"My father wants me to join him and my sister."_

_"Agree,"_ Kaldur said. _"We can use it to capture everyone at once. Perhaps even the members of the organization Cassius told us and the Justice League about known as The Light."_

Artemis nodded, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, sure you do, Dad." She sighed heavily. "But you're right. They still don't trust me. Fine. I'll do it. Where do you want to meet?"

She hung up and nodded just as Megan's phone began to ring as well. She frowned and answered, only for her eyes to widen. She covered her mouth in surprise.

_"Who is it?"_ Kaldur asked.

_"Queen Bee,"_ Megan said. _"She's been blackmailing me and wants me to go to Santa Prisca as well."_

"I'll do it," Megan said, voice dripping with shame, then hung up after a moment.

_"Blackmailing you how?" _Kaldur asked.

_"She knows my true Martian form,"_ Megan said.

_"Bald M'gann?"_ Robin asked. _"Why would-"_

_"Bald M'gann isn't her true form,"_ Cassius said. _"I accidentally saw it when she restored my memories in Bialya. Sorry. I used my training against telepaths to spy on your own memories while you were restoring mine."_

_"It's okay," _Megan said. _"I felt you do it, but I also knew you wouldn't say anything. You were too busy suffering from being what you are to make me suffer from being what I am."_

_"So, what _is_ your true form?" _Robin asked.

Megan took a shuddering breath before transforming into her true form, that of a Martian with exposed muscles, tight, tough skin, two long, clawed fingers per hand and similar feet, webbing under her arms, and pointed teeth. The part that caused Megan shame, however, was the fact that her skin was white. White Martians had been discriminated against on Mars for thousands of years, which included Megan. Everyone who hadn't known stared at her in surprise.

_"Growing up on Mars as a White Martian, I faced constant discrimination," _Megan said. _"I couldn't bear the thought of going through that with you all."_

_"Did we truly seem so shallow?"_ Kaldur asked.

_"I couldn't bear to risk it," _Megan said.

_"You'll need to show Connor, too,"_ Cassius said. _"You need to be completely honest with him if you want to be able to stay with him."_

Megan nodded, and a few minutes later, she set the Bio-Ship down, Artemis walking to the back, where their bikes were all being kept. She took hers and looked to the others.

"Please hurry," Artemis said.

"We'll be there," Cassius said. "Save a few for us, yeah?"

Artemis nodded, smirking, and left. As the Bio-Ship lifted into the air, Cassius glanced at Megan, who smiled knowingly and nodded.

"Sure," Megan smiled. "We have time."

She flew to the town where Cassius's family was buried before setting down, Cassius taking his old appearance and walking to the grave with the others, buying flowers on the way. It had been a while since he visited, as much as he hated to admit it. He introduced Rocket and explained who they were, as well as how they died, and prayed for a moment before they all headed back to the ship.

"Are you Christian?" Rocket asked. "Who were you praying to?"

"Sort of," Cassius said. "I haven't actually gone since I woke up as what I am now, but I remembered I used to pray, so I tried it. Once I got some of my memories back, I remembered who I prayed to specifically, but I still haven't been to a church, and I don't remember very much about the actual religion."

Rocket nodded and they all fell silent as they flew.

"When we reach Santa Prisca, we will deploy into the water around the edge in Stealth Mode, then make our way to you while you, Artemis, and likely Superboy distract and stall the Light," Kaldur said. "Void, I am expecting a powerhouse. Likely not Mammoth, after Superboy's fight against him, however. Maybe Blockbuster."

"I'll handle whoever it is," Cassius nodded. "Orphan, Ravager, you two be careful during this. If the Light is actually here, there might be Shadows as well. At a minimum, Sportsmaster will be here."

"We'll deal with Sportsmaster," Rose said. "Between Orphan's ability, and our teamwork, we'll be able to handle him."

"Right," Cassius nodded.

After a few more hours of flying, Santa Prisca finally came into view.

_"Can everyone hear me?" _Connor's voice asked suddenly.

_"We hear you,"_ Kaldur said.

_"Good," _Connor said._ "I don't have much time. Megan, I have a sort of kill switch in my head that lets Lex Luthor shut my down by saying Red Sun. Can you disable it?"_

_"I'll try,"_ Megan said, closing her eyes to focus, Cassius raising his hands and allowing the Bio-Ship to grow him controls so he could take over flying for her.

_"While she does that, I'll try and explain briefly," _Connor said. _"I've been angry recently because of devices Lex Luthor made called Shields, which suppress the human DNA that was mixed with my Kryptonian DNA when I was cloned. In doing so, it gives me all of the Kryptonian powers I don't have normally. The Human donor was Lex Luthor, which is why I was hesitant to say anything. The problem with the Shields is that suppressing my human DNA makes me angry, and they're addictive. I'm going to try and get more Shields from Luthor, then I'll take everyone here down."_

_"The kill switch is deactivated,"_ Megan reported.

_"Good," _Kaldur said. _"Superboy, Artemis and Megan are being brought in as well. We're deploying into the water, then will join you to take everyone down. Who's the biggest threat there?"_

_"Currently, the main powerhouse is Blockbuster,"_ Connor said.

_"Right," _Cassius nodded. _"I'll handle him."_

_"Understood,"_ Connor said. _"Artemis is here. I'm going silent."_

Megan took over flying again and stopped them over the water finally, everyone's chairs melting away and a cable growing from the ceiling for them. They all deployed silently, everyone who had a Stealth Mode activating it, then once they were in the water and the ship had retracted its cables and sealed the holes in the bottom, it resumed its flight to the meeting. Cassius took off at a sprint as soon as they were on shore, speeding through the trees and reaching the clearing where the meeting was just in time to see Blockbuster break free of the green polyurethane foam he was trapped in and launch himself at Connor. Then, Cassius's fist exploded into the side of his jaw, sending him bouncing away as Cassius's body compressed into the same goo form he'd used to fight the guy at Ice Fortress five, his current most powerful form, as compressing his goo made him faster and stronger, though he wasn't actually sure how. Then, he dove forward as Bane's and his cartel opened fire at him. Then, the rest of the team arrived, tearing into the cartel as Cassandra and Rose made a bee-line for Cheshire and Sportsmaster, both of whom were heading for Artemis.

Cassius ducked under Blockbuster's fist and slammed his own into Blockbuster's jaw again, rocking him backward a step before leaping into an aerial windmill kick, throwing him away. Then, as he landed, Bane's fist crashed into his face, then the other. Several more Venom-enhanced punches slammed into his head before Cassius ducked under one, standing and drilling his own fist into Bane's gut, lifting Bane into the air and stepping around him as he vomited before spinning and windmill kicking him into Blockbuster's face, bouncing him off the massive mutant. Blockbuster roared and charged, only for Cassius's arm to flash across the distance and crash into Blockbuster's face, hurling him backward to Connor, who slammed a punch into his side, hurling him across the clearing. He flipped, driving his hands and feet into the ground and roared in rage, just in time for Kaldur to slam a water mallet into his face, knocking him backward. Cassius glanced around, seeing Cassandra and Rose were no longer fighting Sportsmaster, instead helping with the small army of Cartel thugs, Wally having taken over helping Artemis instead. He looked the other way just as a small army of Robins charged Bane, who dispersed most of the illusions just before the real Robin ripped the hose from the back of his head, then sent a taser cable into the back of his head instead and electrocuted him.

"He's coming," Connor warned, stepping up beside Cassius as Blockbuster charged.

"Don't worry," Cassius smirked. "He won't reach us."

A moment later, half a dozen bolos wrapped around Blockbuster's legs and torso, binding him in place before electricity screamed over his body, making him roar in pain as he collapsed, skidding to a stop in front of them.

"Thanks Ravager," Cassius smiled, waving to Rose, who waved back before returning to beating down Bane's cartel with Cassandra.

Cassius turned back to Blockbuster as he began to struggle to break free, only for Cassius and Connor to both drill a fist into his face, knocking him out. He turned to the cartel, but the girls were just finishing tying up the last of them. And when he turned to Cheshire and Sportsmaster, Cheshire was gone, and Wally was speeding around and around Sportsmaster. Then, he shot out of the way just before Artemis slammed a kick into Sportsmaster's face, sending his mask flying and dropping him before dropping a polyurethane arrow on him and walking away as the foam restrained him, leaving only he head uncovered. Wally walked over with the mask and Artemis smiled knowingly.

"Souvenir," Artemis said, both of them smirking.

"That went well," Cassius said, looking around, then sighing. "But Luthor and Queen Bee escaped."

"Sorry," Rocket said. "I tried to catch their chopper, but they had rockets."

"It is fine," Kaldur said. "We have identified them as being a part of the Light, so the League can watch them now. It also proves that Cassius was likely correct about the other members' identities."

"And now we know that there wasn't actually a mole," Cassius said. "They were just trying to create three."

"And they failed," Robin said.

The others all nodded and Megan walked over to Connor, giving him a worried, ashamed look, only for him to pull her into a hug.

"I already knew," Connor said. "I've known since our minds melded in Bialya."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Megan asked.

"I figured you'd tell me when you were ready," Connor said.

"It _is_ always like this!" Rocket grinned, looking around as Cassius and a clone, both back in their normal forms, carried over Blockbuster and Bane, Megan quickly gathering the rest of the cartel thugs and Sportsmaster with her telekinesis.

"Told you," Zatanna said.

"Disaster averted," Robin smirked. "Feeling the aster."

"Agreed," Kaldur said. "This has been a good day."

"Let's go drop these all off at prison and get back to the Cave," Cassius said. "I'm sure the League's probably wondering where we disappeared to this time."

The others all nodded and they all boarded the Bio-Ship, taking off instantly as Rocket excitedly asked the others for stories about the missions they'd done, both before and after the Team.

* * *

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	41. Chapter 41

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Darkest Hour

"Happy New Year's Eve," Cassius smiled as Cassandra looked up at him, eyes still clouded from sleep. "Come on. Kaldur's called a team meeting at seven, so you need to get up and dressed. And we're supposed to meet in our costumes."

Cassandra nodded and stood, yawning and stretching before beginning to gather her costume and towel. As she did, he headed to Rose's room, waking her and passing her the message as well before going to take his own shower. Once he was done, he waited just outside the living quarters for them. Once they were done showering, getting dressed, and had dropped off their pajamas in their rooms, the three of them walked into the hallway, finding the others just passing.

"Somehow, the bad guys are still getting inside intel about us," Robin said.

"Yeah, but, at least we know none of us are the mole," Wally said.

"That's correct," Batman said, he and Red Tornado standing on the far side of the room. "The mole was Red Arrow." He pulled up the computer screen with a picture of him.

"Roy?" Robin asked.

"No way!" Wally said.

"Batman, that cannot be," Aqualad said. "He was Green Arrow's protégé. We have all known him for years."

Just then, Cassandra tugged Cassius's hand and he glanced at her, seeing her staring at Batman, Cassius seeing the fear and distrust in her eyes. He extended a hair-thick strand of goo through the Team's combined shadow to Megan, tapping her leg twice, and felt the connection form instantly.

_"Cassandra, show me,"_ Cassius said.

Instantly, images flooded his head. Batman's posture was rigid and set, seeming almost identical to Red Tornado's, which was simply that of a robot. However, through his connection with Cassandra, Cassius knew that Batman's usual posture was tense and on edge, not stiff and locked up. The images faded and Megan opened the rest of their links again.

"Unfortunately, the Roy Harper we have known for the last three years is another Project Cadmus clone," Tornado said, the image changing from Red Arrow to Cadmus's surface-level building.

_"Batman's being controlled," _Cassius warned. _"Cassandra can tell by his posture that he's not himself. The closest comparison I can think of is that he's acting as much as a robot as Red Tornado is."_

"We've learned the real Speedy was abducted and replaced immediately after becoming Green Arrow's sidekick," Batman said. "The clone was pre-programmed with a drive to join the Justice League, which is why he was so angry over any delays to his admission, and why he refused to join the Team."

_"How do we play this?" _Robin asked.

"This Roy Harper had no idea he was a clone, or a traitor, and his subconscious programming drove him to become League-worthy," Batman continued. "So, he struck out on his own as Red Arrow. When he _was_ finally admitted, his secondary programming kicked in, and he attempted to betray the League to Vandal Savage."

_"Play along like we believe them for now,"_ Cassius said. _"We have to assume the entire League has been compromised."_

"Fortunately, I had already deduced Red Arrow was a clone," Batman said. "We were prepared."

"Savage was subdued, but Red Arrow escaped," Tornado said. "He is now a fugitive. Armed and dangerous."

"If you guys hadn't rescued me from Cadmus..." Connor trailed off, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What...What happened to the _real_ Roy?" Robin asked.

"We don't know," Batman said. "He isn't at Cadmus. We have to face the possibility that the real Roy Harper is dead."

Zatanna set a hand on Robin's shoulder, and Artemis raised a hand toward Wally's, only to hesitate and pull it back.

"The clone Roy," Kaldur said. "The Team will find him."

"Negative," Batman said. "Red Arrow's a member of the Justice League now. Leave him to us." Just then, his communicator beeped and he lifted his hand to it as the holographic screen shut off behind him. "I'm needed on the Watchtower. Tornado, stay with the kids."

Robin's eyes narrowed slightly. _"Whoever's in control just slipped up. Batman doesn't call us kids."_

_"Vandal Savage would,"_ Cassius said.

_"Clone or no clone, Red Arrow was one of us,"_ Kaldur said as Red Tornado walked forward, one hand raised toward the back of Kaldur's head, holding something. _"We_ will_ go after him."_

_"Behind you!"_ Cassius warned, left hand pulling Kaldur away from Red Tornado just as his body locked up and he fell still. His other hand formed goo and shot forward, shoving Tornado back into the wall, pinning him there. _"He shut down."_

_"Guys, I'm sensing a low-level mystic force at play," _Zatanna said. _"I don't know if it caused his shut down but...now that I think about it, I was getting the same buzz off Batman."_

_"It's probably how they're being controlled," _Cassius sad, an extra goo arm forming from the side of the one holding Tornado against the wall, stretching over to the hand that would have put whatever he was holding against the back of Kaldur's head. _"Let's see what he meant to stick on you."_

The goo arm opened Tornado's hand and both arms retracted, allowing Tornado to fall to the ground. Then, he held up a small triangular piece of some kind of flesh with red lines crossing over it and the corners bent into small points. Cassius frowned, showing the others.

_"Same mystic buzz,"_ Zatanna nodded.

_"It's one of those biotech chips we confiscated off of Cheshire during the ambush," _Wally said.

_"Something is not right," _Kaldur said. _"Robin, Kid, Zatanna, Rocket, see if you can get Tornado back online."_

_"I think Red Arrow's secondary programming was to stick these chips to the back of the League's heads, granting Vandal Savage control,"_ Cassius said. _"But then Red Arrow's programming was finished and he was free, so he fled and managed to escape the League."_

_"I believe you may be correct,"_ Kaldur said. _"Everyone else will come with me to find Ro-Red Arrow. Cassius, stay here in order to restrain Tornado if necessary."_

They all nodded and turned to leave, Cassandra and Rose hesitating. He smiled, giving them both a hug.

_"Go, I'll be_ fine_," _Cassius promised.

They nodded and followed the others. Cassius turned back to the group he was assigned to just as Zatanna used her magic to summon a pair of metal block tables and Robin returned from Tornado's apartment with a bald, Caucasian, android body, setting it on one table and Tornado on the other. Then, Wally plugged a cord between the two bodies' heads and began to transfer Red Tornado's consciousness between the bodies.

"So, let me get this straight," Rocket said. "Red Tornado built this android body...to party."

"Not how he's put it, but...yeah, more or less," Zatanna said.

"Recognize Black Canary, One-Three," the cave's computer reported as the Zeta tube powered on, Cassius's gut dropping instantly, Robin's eyes widening slightly.

"Hey guys," Canary said, sounding sympathetic and worried. "I just wanted to check in and see how you're handling thi-" she stopped, staring at Red Tornado. "Wat are you doing to Red!?"

"It's not how it looks!" Wally said hurriedly.

"It looks like you're downloading his consciousness into a new body!" Canary said, just as the download finished.

"Okay, it's pretty much exactly how it looks," Wally said as Cassius braced himself to run for his life. "But-"

Tornado sat up suddenly, eyes wide. "Team, get out of the cave! Now!"

Cassius took off instantly, only for the Canary Cry to crash into him anyway, slamming him into Tornado's new body, smashing it completely, and then both of them to crash into Wally, all three bouncing across the room. At the same time, Tornado's legs crashed into Zatanna and Rocket, sending both flying as well. Cassius groaned as Robin stood from where he'd hidden behind the table Tornado's new body was on and attacked Canary. Cassius tried to stand, only for his entire body to throb, dropping him back to his forearms and knees where he began to couch up blood, then wretched and vomited more of it.

"Cassius!" Zatanna gasped.

"Fight!" Cassius choked out before beginning to cough up more blood.

However, just as soon as Canary hurled Robin, a small metal disk on her shoulder released a cloud of thick, green, sleeping gas, which Rocket caught in a spherical barrier with Canary, holding it until she had passed out.

"Black Canary attacked us?" Zatanna asked.

"Black Canary is the least of our problems," Tornado said. "We must abandon the Cave."

"Least of _your_ worries!" Wally said, kneeling beside Cassius.

"Cassius!" Cassandra shrieked, sprinting over to him suddenly, Rose just behind her.

"What are you doing here?" Robin asked.

"I saw him get hurt!" Rose said as the two knelt beside Cassius, Cassandra in tears.

"I'm...alright," he said, trying to smile reassuringly. "I'm healing already. I'm going to be fine. I just need time to rest."

"Will you still be able to fight the League?" Robin asked.

"I don't have a choice," Cassius said. "I'll be alright, but we need to leave, now."

The others nodded and Cassandra and Rose lifted Cassius to his feet, helping him stumble and stagger to the hangar where the Bio-Ship was waiting, Connor just leading Sphere into the ship.

"Cassius!" Megan gasped, flying over. "What happened to him!?"

"Black Canary," Robin said. "We can explain on the way, but we need to leave before the League gets here."

"What?" Kaldur asked. "Why?"

"Recognize Icon-"

"No time!" Robin shouted. "Go!"

They all sprinted onto the ship, Megan flying Cassius and dropping him unceremoniously on the floor with a rushed apology, then took off the moment the back of the ship had sealed, before anyone else was even in their seats. She cloaked the ship before it left the hangar and flew quickly toward the Hall of Justice. After a few moments of flying without being attacked, Cassandra and Rose helped Cassius into a seat, then sat to either side of him, both taking one of his hands as his face began to slowly contort more and more in pain.

"Zatanna, can you help him?" Rose asked after a moment.

"I'll try," Zatanna said. "I can't promise it'll work, though."

Rose nodded and Zatanna cast a quick spell on Cassius, the same she'd used on Cassandra when she'd been shot. Then, everyone turned to Tornado's upper body, which was the only part they'd brought with them, and which had the outer shell around its left eye broken off.

"The entire League is under the complete mental domination of Vandal Savage," Tornado said. "Red Arrow seems to have been his means, his method, with something Savage referred to as Starro Tech, an alien bio-organism infuse with nanotechnology and magic. It shuts down the mind's autonomy and allows Savage to reprogram the individual to suit his needs. Even my inorganic brain was not immune, but the process requires zero point one six nanoseconds to fully integrate with its host's nervous system. That delay allowed me to create an internal subprogram which would disconnect my internal power cells if I tried to infect another person. Fortunately, the Starro Tech is body-specific. As John Smith, I am not free of outside control."

"This Starro Tech," Robin said. "It worked on super-powered humans? Four flavors of alien? An android? Even Doctor Fate? Defeating all of you without a fight?"

"Indeed," Tornado said. "A remarkable achievement. One not easily countered."

"Stop here," Kaldur said suddenly, Megan stopping the ship.

"What's up?" Robin asked.

"Roy set up equipment caches after striking out on his own," Kaldur said. "This is one of them. I will go and see if he is there, then bring him back. Tornado, was he infected?"

"No," Tornado said. "He was controlled only by his Cadmus programming."

Kaldur nodded and left the ship to the building they were hovering over. As they did, Cassius closed his eyes, his thoughts returning to what had happened.

"It's not reprogramming," Cassius said. "It's remote control."

"How do you know?" Tornado asked. "Because reprogramming would look more natural once it's done, but when Cassandra read Batman's body language, he was rigid and unnatural, like a robot. No offense."

"None taken," Tornado said.

Cassandra tapped Cassius's arm and signed, "Black Canary, too."

"She says Canary had similar body language," Cassius relayed. "Someone, probably the Light themselves, is remote controlling the League. We need to find a way to remove the chips. Starting with Black Canary, who we've got tied up in the back of the ship."

"Kaldur's back," Megan reported suddenly. "He's got Red Arrow."

"Good," Robin said. "I'll go get Canary and bring her up here. We need to compare notes with Red Arrow and find a way to remove the chips from the League."

The others all nodded and Robin walked away.

* * *

Cassius watched as Black Canary stirred. They'd managed to make a chip of their own by reverse-engineering the Starro Tech chip they'd taken from Tornado. They called it cure-tech, and they'd decided to use the first on Black Canary in order to cure her as well as testing the effectiveness.

Canary groaned, pushing herself up and looking around, Cassius instinctively shrinking back slightly when she turned her head toward him. she stopped, blinking twice and staring at him before her eyes widened.

"Cassius," she breathed before pushing herself up, her eyes watering. "I hurt you, didn't I? I'm so sorry!"

"You don't remember?" Cassius asked.

She shook her head. "I'm sorry!"

"It's alright," Cassius said, looking to Cassandra, who nodded. "I don't blame you. You weren't in control."

Black Canary smiled gratefully and Cassius stepped forward, hugging her, Canary returning it instantly. "How did you cure me?"

"We reverse-engineered a Starro Tech chip and made a chip of our own," Cassius said, stepping back and looking over at Red Arrow, who nodded, Robin sticking a chip to him as well to immunize him to Starro Tech. "It can cure and immunize. So now we all have to get it. Then we'll go fix Tornado's normal body and we'll be ready."

"Ready?" Canary asked.

"We have a plan to save the League, but it's risky," Cassius said.

Canary nodded. "I'll watch over you all while you're getting immunized."

"We're doing it in sets of two," Cassius said, walking over to Robin, Cassandra and Rose. "That way we don't have to worry about one or two bodyguards getting ambushed."

"And so someone can watch me?" Canary asked.

"It's not personal," Cassius said. "We don't know for sure that it worked."

"No, it's alright," Canary said. "I agree. It's the right thing to do. And don't worry. This isn't like the lack of trust the League had in you. This is fair."

Cassius nodded and Robin pressed the cure-tech chip to the back of his neck, darkness claiming him almost instantly.

* * *

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	42. Chapter 42

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Heroes vs Sidekicks

Cassius flipped over Hal Jordan, placing the cure-tech chip they'd made for him, then turned to Savage and Klarion, both of whom glared at him.

"You're gonna regret that," Klarion said, just as a golden portal appeared off to the side, Superman, Batman, other Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, and Hawkwoman all landing below it.

Canary stepped up beside Cassius and screamed at the main group as Cassius leapt into the air to intercept Batman, the pair crashing tot he ground and rolling along for a moment before Cassius managed to kick Batman away. Batman rolled to his feet as Cassius shoved himself up, the two glaring at each other.

"Kill him!" Klarion shouted, working his controls rapidly.

Cassius shouted in agony as he compressed his body into his goo form and stepped out of the way of Batman's fist, making no move to place a cure-tech chip. He didn't have time, because a moment after he'd avoided Batman's punch, Canary crashed into him, unconscious. He flipped, catching her just as Superman and Wonder Woman ripped Tornado's arms and legs off and Batman hurled an explosive at Red Arrow, knocking him out as well, Manhunter on his hands and knees. Cassius set Canary down as the heroes all turned and charged at Cassius. He huffed and exploded forward, spinning around Batman, Superman, and Manhunter, then drilled a fist into Hawkwoman's gut, grabbing her by the back of the head and placing a chip before spinning and slamming her into Batman, hurling him. The Green Lantern formed a bubble around Cassius, but his body erupted into a goo spike, smashing through it and missing the Lantern by an inch before Cassius regrew from the end, placing a chip before retracting the goo. Then, he formed a set of wings and flapped them hard, barely avoiding an incendiary bomb Batman had thrown at him, then again to drop to the ground and slip under Superman's Heat Vision.

He exploded forward, retracting his wings and sending his goo flashing forward, crashing into Superman's face and sending him crashing into Batman, both bouncing away before Cassius spun, ducking under manhunter's kick and slamming a punch into his back. Agony lanced through his head as Manhunter tried to brain blast him, but he resisted. Then, he spun, throwing a windmill kick at Superman, only for the Kryptonian to catch his foot and spin, flipping him over himself and smashing him to the ground, hard.

"Always you," Cassius groaned, then reversed his entre body, slamming a foot into Superman's throat, sending him staggering away, though he wasn't seriously injured from the kick.

He stood just in time to bat an incendiary grenade aside, then received a punch from Batman before spinning, his left fist crashing into the side of Batman's head. He had to admit, Batman's training had done wonders for his ability to stay awake. However, Superman caught him by the throat before he could follow up his punch with anything, slamming him into the ground before slamming a dozen machinegun punches into his face, knocking him out and reverting him to himself.

When he stirred again five minutes later, it was with Rose shaking him desperately. He groaned, pushing himself up and looking around. Cassandra was fighting Batman on relatively level ground, Connor was getting beaten around the room by Superman, and Manhunter was moving to help Superman.

"Help Orphan," Cassius said, ignoring the agony of using his goo again to once again adopt his goo form.

Rose sprinted toward Cassandra and Batman as Cassius exploded off the ground and drilled a Superman punch into its namesake's jaw just as he hurled Sphere into the ceiling, where it got stuck. He sent a strand of goo up to Sphere, ripping it free of the ceiling and retracted the goo as Connor stepped up beside him.

"Can you keep that form for long?" Connor asked.

"As long as I can ignore the agony or using my goo," Cassius said. "Long enough."

Connor nodded and they both charged, Superman flying forward to meet them. Cassius flipped over the punch aimed at him while Connor was hit. Then, Cassius's fist exploded down on Superman's back, blasting him into the floor. At the same time, Megan, who Manhunter had caught when she tried to sneak up on him, transformed into her true form and seemed to brain blast him, since he shouted in pain before she placed the cure-tech chip. Superman hurled Cassius off and flew at Megan, only for Cassius to catch his feet and spin, swinging him around into Connor's fist, which connected squarely with Superman's face, sending him exploding into the wall. He stood instantly and fired his Heat Vision at Cassius, who shot out of the way, the beam sweeping over to Connor and blasting him away. When Cassius shot forward, Superman exhaled, a wave of frigid ice freezing Cassius into place instantly.

Superman stopped to inhale and the ice exploded off, Cassius's fist exploding into Superman's face and blasting him into the wall again before dozens of arms sprouted from Cassius's torso, beginning to slam punches into Superman's face and torso as fast as Superman had been punching him in the face to knock him out before.

"Go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep, go to sleep!" Cassius chanted as one hand grabbed a piece of cure-tech, only for Superman to catch that arm before it could reach him.

Then, Superman slammed the back of his fist into Cassius's head, sending him crashing across the room before he fell to the lowest level just as Robin reached Batman's fight against Cassandra and Rose one level above where Cassius landed and two below where Superman was. Robin flipped over them and caught Batman's fist before he could throw a punch, pulling him off balance and allowing Cassandra to finally place a cure-tech chip to Batman's head, dropping him. Cassius stood as Connor exploded down on Superman's back as he was moving to attack Cassius again. Just as they crashed to the ground, Robin landing beside them.

"You sure about this?" Robin asked.

"Do it!" Connor shouted, struggling to hold Superman in a bearhug from behind.

Robin pulled out a small case and opened it, the piece of green kryptonite inside of it shining on the two Kryptonians, both of them groaning and collapsing. Robin quickly placed a piece of cure-tech on Superman before closing the case and putting it away, Connor panting as Cassius helped him stand, shifting back to his normal form and beginning to pant as well.

"Kryptonite," Connor panted. "That hurt."

"That's why Batman keeps it in an overwhelmingly impenetrable vault in the Batcave," Robin said, then grinned. "Or, maybe more of a _whelmingly penetrable_ one."

"Cassius!" Cassandra said as she and Rose landed beside him.

He smiled. "I'm alright." He pulled them both into a hug. "You both did amazingly."

"Thank you," Rose smiled. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Same," Cassius smiled, then looked to Robin and Connor. "Is that everyone?"

"Megan went to help Rocket with Wonder Woman," Connor said. "And I think we got all the others on the way here."

"Good," Cassius said. "Let's go check on Canary, Arrow, and Tornado."

They nodded and headed back up several levels, arriving along with the others just as Klarion and Savage left.

"Congratulation, Team," Tornado said from his place on the floor. "You have won the day."

Just then, an alert appeared, announcing New Years day. Instantly, Wally swept Artemis into his arms.

"I should have done this a long time ago," Wally said.

"No kidding," Artemis smirked before kissing him.

Superman and Megan also kissed, and Zatanna pulled Robin into a surprise kiss and Cassius shook his head

_"Aren't you going to kiss your girlfriends too?"_ Artemis's voice teased in Cassius's head, courtesy of Megan linking herself, Artemis, and Zatanna to him, despite all three being otherwise occupied.

_"Would if I had one,"_ Cassius said.

Just then, both Cassandra and Rose stood up on their tip toes and kissed him on the cheeks, Cassius sighing heavily instantly as all of the others began to "Ooo" dramatically, even the three couples.

"Jeez," Cassius sighed. "You two." He shook his head. "What am I going to do with you."

Both laughed, hugging him, and he sighed, hugging them back. The couples returned to what they'd been doing and the others turned away to give everyone privacy.

"Liking this team more every day," Rocket said, reaching up and kissing Kaldur on the cheek.

Cassius pulled back from the girls, who both obediently released him. Cassius picked up Tornado and Tornado gave him directions to the room on the Watchtower where he could put him back together, the girls each collecting an arm and leg for him and following.

* * *

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	43. Chapter 43

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Passage

Cassius flipped over the massive, charging freak allowing him to crash into the wall of the sewer tunnel, cracking the stone. Killer Crock snarled angrily and turned, roaring and charging back the other way, leaping at him again, only for Cassius's left arm to snap up, slamming a goo fist into the side of his head, hurling him aside. As he began to stand, Cassandra and Robin both fired a taser cable into his back as Ravager wrapped an electrified bolo around his arms. Electricity screamed over his body for several seconds before he collapsed. A moment later, Batman appeared, livid.

"I specifically ordered all of you to let me handle him," Batman snarled.

"Yeah well if we had waited for you, Killer Crock would have gotten away," Robin said. "Where were you? What, did the Batmobile lose a wheel?"

Batman was silent for a moment before answering. "Two, actually."

All four stared at him in silence for a moment before Cassius and Rose began to laugh.

"Is that funny?" Batman asked.

"Kinda, yeah," Cassius said.

"What happened?" Robin asked.

"Not here," Batman said. "Cassius and I will drop off Killer Crock at Arkham then meet you at the Batcave."

The others nodded and Cassius encased Crock in his goo and walked him out of the sewer after Batman, then formed himself a pair of goo wings, taking off into the air, Batman speeding away in the Batmobile

* * *

Cassius walked into the Batcave after the Batmobile and raised an eyebrow, seeing a young boy, maybe twelve at most, covered in dirt, and surrounded by Cassandra, Rose, and Robin, all three still in costume and watching him suspiciously, but not restraining him.

"Who's the brat?" Cassius asked, aging himself to roughly Batman's age before stepping out of the shadows.

"That won't be necessary, Void," Batman said. "This is Jason Todd. He's the reason I was late when we were going after Killer Crock. He stole the wheels off of the Batmobile."

"So why is he here?" Cassius asked.

"Because when I went after him, he was able to keep me from catching him for fifteen minutes, while carrying them," Batman said.

"No shit?" Cassius asked, returning to his normal form. "Well, color me impressed. He's got skill."

"What are you?" Jason asked.

"Fucked if I know," Cassius snorted, walking over and extending his hand. "I'm Void. I'm sure you recognize Robin. That's Orphan, and she's Ravager."

Jason nodded, looking around worriedly. "Am I in trouble?"

"That's up to the big man," Cassius said, turning to look at Batman.

"Robin," Batman said, turning to him. "Go and get changed, then bring your uniform back down."

"Upgrades?" Robin asked.

"No," Batman said. "You're no longer Robin."

Robin's jaw dropped, and Cassius felt his own gut drop out of pure sympathy.

"What?" Robin asked. "Why? Because I took command and we took down Crock without you!? That's bullshit!"

"Robin!" Batman snapped. "That's not why. I wasn't finished. You're no longer Robin, because you no longer need to be. You're not ready to join the League, but you're close. You're ready to be your own hero, not a sidekick or protégé. You'll choose a new identity, design a new uniform, and then you'll choose your own path. And once you're ready, you'll be allowed into the League."

Robin stared at him for a moment before nodding. "And what about Robin?"

"Jason will take over as him," Batman said. "I'll train him, teach him to be a detective, and the Team will teach him to work as a member of a group."

The others nodded.

"Does that mean you're taking him in?" Cassius asked.

"That's right," Batman nodded. "Introduce yourselves."

Jason looked around at them all as they pulled their masks off, except Cassius, who retracted his as goo. His jaw dropped instantly, and he looked to Batman, who had also unmasked himself.

"Bruce Wayne!" Jason breathed. "Holy shit! You're..." His eyes realized as he remembered what Cassius had asked.

"Welcome to the family, Jason," Dick said.

"That is, if you want to join," Batman said.

"Of course!" Jason said. "Th...Thank you!"

Bruce nodded. "Alfred will show you around." He gestured to the butler who had just suddenly appeared without anyone but Batman and Cassandra having noticed, as usual.

Jason nodded and followed Alfred and the others turned toward Batman.

"How do you know he's clean?" Robin asked.

"Martian Manhunter already checked him for Cadmus programming, connections to the Shadows and the Light, and any reason to betray us. Then he erased any memory of having met him, or done anything but having waited for us to return. He's clean."

Robin nodded. "I'll go change. And I've already got a name and a costume design."

Batman nodded and they all headed up to the mansion.

* * *

Cassius watched as Jason took down the thugs rapidly and, none of them taking more than a few blows, and none of them lasting longer than a few seconds. Cassius frowned. There were a lot of them, but they were barely more than a common mugger. And yet, they all wore clown masks and makeup, and all wielded knives. They had to be a gang, but they didn't seem very dangerous.

"Void, report," Batman said over their communicators. "How's he doing?"

"Good," Cassius responded. "We're fighting a gang, they seem like smalltime thugs that like dressing up as clowns."

"Clowns?" Batman asked.

"Yeah," Cassius nodded. "A dozen or two of them."

"Get out of there, now!" Batman snarled. "The Clowns are led by Joker!"

"Shit!" Cassius hissed, then sent a strand of goo down to Jason, yanking him up to the roof. "Time to go!"

Jason followed without question as Cassius retracted his goo.

* * *

Cassius ducked under Sportsmaster's foot, standing and jumping, spinning backward and slamming a kick into his chest, hurling him away. As he did, Rose and Dick, now officially named Nightwing and wearing an all-black set of formfitting armor like Cassius always formed but with a blue bird silhouette across his chest, were trying to fend Deathstroke off as Cassandra fight lady Shiva, and Jason fought Cheshire. Cassius didn't understand how the mission had gone so far sideways. The mission had been easy. Investigate reports of the man Cassius had found at Ice Fortress five being sighted in a small town in the countryside of Ireland. However, when they'd gotten there, it had been Sportsmaster and Cheshire waiting. And then about a minute into the ensuing fight, Deathstroke and Lady Shive had arrived. Dick had called for reinforcements, but the rest of the Team were all out on a mission of their own, facing other known members of the League of Shadows. It was obviously a trap for him, Cassandra, and Rose, but he couldn't figure out why the exact timing. Why, of all days, they felt the need to ambush them on the need to try and take Cassandra and Rose back by force on the day the Team had chosen to be Cassius's new birthday, a date they'd agreed on nearly six months ago.

"You seem distracted!" Sportsmaster said, drilling a fist into Cassius's face, only for his arm to pass through his head to mid-forearm.

"One good trap deserves another," Cassius said, his mouth being the only part of his face not turned into a hole.

Then, he drilled a dozen right fists into Sportsmaster's torso at once, crumpling his armor and sending him bouncing away, finally unconscious. He turned and quickly glanced around at the other fights. Dick and Rose needed the most help, for obvious reasons. Cassandra was holding her own using her blunt wakizashi, as Rose was using her own blunted swords, and Jason was doing fairly well against Cheshire.

"Bring it on, Cassius," Deathstroke invited, jumping and slamming a kick into both of his opponents heads, hurling them away before pointing his sword at Cassius. "It's been a while since I taught you a lesson."

"You can't teach me anything if I don't forget what I learned," Cassius growled, shifting into his goo form and forming himself a pair of goo wakizashi.

He shot forward, slashing at Deathstroke rapidly. Deathstroke's eye narrowed inside his mask as he deflected Cassius's blades again and again. Finally, he spun as Cassius slashed from above and his own sword split Cassius in half just above the waist. Cassius's upper body spun instantly, slashing at Deathstroke, who leapt backward, the blade carving a gash across the front of his mask but failing to cut through. Deathstroke stood, smirking, as Cassius's halves reconnected.

"You've learned some new tricks," Deathstroke said.

"Several," Cassius said, just as a second Cassius burst out of the ground behind Deathstroke.

The clone slashed both blades down across his back, failing to get through his armor, but sending him staggering forward just before the first Cassius drilled a fist into his face, sending him bouncing and flipping backward into Lady Shiva, both bouncing away from Cassandra before crashing down in a heap. A moment later, an explosion went off behind Cheshire and she flew away from Jason as well, flipping and landing on her feet, then retreating from Jason and Ravager until she was standing beside Deathstroke and Lady Shiva, Sportsmaster joining her a moment later.

"Time to call it," Sportsmaster said. "See you another time kiddos."

Then, a yellow portal appeared behind them, Sportsmaster hurling his unconscious companions through as Cheshire picked up their swords. Then, the two conscious enemies walked through and disappeared. Cassius sighed, sitting down hard and taking a deep breath. A few moments later, Cassandra and Rose sat beside him, wrapping their arms around him as Nightwing called Kaldur, letting him know that they had managed to beat the Shadows that had attacked them. Kaldur reported the same and said they were coming to pick them up.

* * *

Cassius smiled almost imperceptibly as he surveyed the Team. They'd sent the junior members on a small mission. Nothing major, at least by Team standards. Icicle Sr., Icicle Jr., and Killer Frost. They'd done well. Granted, there had only been a handful of grunts and the three ice villains, one of which happened to also be a grunt, against a now vastly expanded Team roster. In addition to the originals, the Team now included Tempest and Aquagirl, real names Garth and Tula, Aqualad's childhood friends from Atlantis, Batgirl, real name Barbara Gordon, daughter of Gotham City's police commissioner as well as Dick's off-and-on girlfriend alongside Zatanna, Bumblebee, real name Karen Beecher, Lagoon Boy, real name La'gaan, who looked like a green and black Creature from the Black Lagoon, and Beast Boy, real name Garfield Logan, the young son of Megan's childhood hero and actress, from whom she derived her human appearance and who she had given her blood to in order to save him, resulting in him developing the power to shapeshift into animals. The team worked almost perfectly together most of the time, most of the people on the team were power houses, and Cassius had at some point become the unofficial combat trainer of the team, alongside Cassandra. It wasn't technically a leadership position, but in any fight they got into, his word was law. Even the original members did what he told them to during a fight. He loved it.

"What do you think?" Nightwing asked, walking over. "Are they ready?"

"For what, the League?" Cassius snorted. "Hell no. They're kids. I doubt half of them will even _want_ to join the League after a couple years of this shit. But for _almost_ every situation we run into, yeah. They're ready. As long as it's not the Shadows in force or Nemesis, they'll be fine."

"Nemesis?" Nightwing asked.

"Well we couldn't just call him 'the guy from Ice Fortress five' forever, could we?" Cassius asked. "He claimed to be my nemesis in my life before, so I gave him an appropriate name."

Nightwing nodded. "Still no new memories?"

"Nothing," Cassius sighed. "It's been...what, three years since he attacked me on that fortress?"

"Right about, yeah," Nightwing said.

Cassius shook his head. "I don't think I'll remember anything else. Ever. But that's fine. I have what I need. I know how to be human, I know how to be a hero, and I'm learning to use my powers well enough to protect them." He glanced across the room, finding Cassandra and Rose without even having to try, a small smile tugging at his lips instantly.

"Careful you don't start sounding like you're proving the girls right," Nightwing smirked.

Cassius groaned. "Don't remind me. Christ. It's been three years and they still won't let it drop."

Nightwing chuckled. "That's because we see what you refuse to accept. Come on. It's time for you to abuse the children."

Cassius grinned instantly. "Oh, I _love_ our child abuse sessions."

Nightwing shook his head as they walked toward the sparring ring together.

* * *

Cassius watched as Nightwing walked the newest Batman Incorporated member through martial arts. Tim Drake was Cassandra's age and had apparently met Dick Grayson with his family at the circus they worked at the same day they died. Then, he had seen Dick, as Robin, fighting and realized who he was by his acrobatics. And finally, fate, or maybe dumb luck, had brought him and Dick together again. During an attack by the Clowns, which had been becoming more and more frequent, and more and more organized the last couple of years, Nightwing had found Tim struggling to defend his parents from several clowns. Dick had intervened to save them, but by the time the fight had ended, a laughing gas bomb had gone off in the house, killing Tim's parents. As Tim had already known the secret anyway, Dick brought him back to mansion and spent an entire day arguing with Batman, alongside Alfred and Tim himself, to allow Tim to join. So now, they were training him. He didn't have a name yet, and Batman was refusing to let him choose one until his training was finished, but he was getting there.

"Void, Orphan, Ravager, you have a mission with the Team," Batman said.

"Right," Cassius nodded, the three of them heading to the Zeta Tube and heading to the Cave.

* * *

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	44. Chapter 44

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Death in the Family

Cassius slammed two Clowns into the wall, Cassandra dropped from the roof above him to drop two more behind him. This was not good. They were scattered, all of them facing groups of Clowns all over Gotham. Something was seriously wrong. There were too many attacks to be random.

"Void and Orphan reporting in," Cassius said over his communicator as he and Cassandra cuffed the Clowns into groups. "Our group's been dealt with. We're restraining them now. Where to next?"

"Head to Robin's location," Nightwing said. "We got separated in a mob. I'm heading to Batgirl and Ravager's position to help them, I'm not sure where he is."

"We're enroute," Cassius said, just as they finished cuffing the last Clown.

They both headed up to the roofs, heading from one to the next quickly until they'd finally reached the Clown group Jason had been trying to fight. The Clowns were still there, looting every building in sight, but Jason was nowhere to be seen.

"No sign of Robin," Cassius said, holding a hand to his communicator. "We're moving to deal with the Clowns. We'll make one of them tell us what we want to know."

"Be quick," Batman said.

Cassius dropped instantly, Cassandra swinging after him with her grappling gun. They both tore into the Clowns instantly, dropping them rapidly. The fight took longer than Cassius had wanted, however. After nearly twenty minutes, they finally dropped the last Clown and Cassius pick one of them up, slapping him awake.

"Where is Robin!?" Cassius snarled.

"Did you lose your birdie?" the clown asked before laughing.

"He can't tell you nothing," a feminine voice said from behind them. "He don't know where the little birdie is. But I do."

Cassius narrowed his eyes at Harley Quinn, a blonde Clown and second-in-command to Joker, who she considered her boyfriend and who considered her a semi-convenient, occasional pass time, at best. Her blonde hair was in a pair of pigtails, the end of one died blue and the other pink, matching but reversed eyeshadow, bright blue eyes, pale white skin with white makeup on her face to make it even paler, ruby-red lips, a tight red and black belly shirt with the left side red with a black diamond over her nipple and the right half black with a red star, a pair of short shorts with a, once again, matching but reversed color scheme, this time without any extra signals, a pair of thigh-high stockings, the left having a three-inch-thick black strip around the top then the rest red, and the right being reversed, and a pair of high-heeled shoes, the left black and the right red, and in her hands was a massive mallet with the left side black with four red diamonds arranged into a diamond, and the right side red with black diamonds.

"Harley Quinn," Cassius growled. "Where is Robin?"

"Nah uh, no spoilers," Harley said. "You'll have to beat our new friends first."

Two Clowns stomped out of a pair of back alleys to either side of her, both of their muscles swollen somewhere between Bane's and Mammoth's. Both charged instantly, only for Cassius to put his down instantly with a goo hammer from above, and Cassandra dropped hers with a taser cable to the forehead. Harley turned to flee, only for Cassius to stick her to a wall with goo. He growled in annoyance and walked toward her, forming his left arm into a blade and held it to her throat.

"Talk," Cassius snarled.

"You won't kill me," Harley snorted. "You're smarter than that."

"You're right," Cassius said. "I _am_ smarter. I'll just leave you here, stuck and immobile and surrounded by a bunch of psychotic, male criminals with nothing to lose and no law enforcement around."

Harley's eyes widened, flitting around quickly before she swallowed hard. "Now...let's not do anything we'll regret."

"I won't regret anything," Cassius said. "Spill, or I leave you to be raped by ever Clown here."

Harley's eyes shut tight, her face scrunching up before she shouted several loud swears. "He's in the warehouse by the port. Batsy will know which one. It used to belong to Two-Face."

"Good girl," Cassius said, reclaiming his goo and allowing Cassandra to tase and cuff Harley, Cassius quickly restraining the rest using goo tendrils to manipulate the cuffs as he raised a hand to his communicator. "Two-Face's warehouse. There's a good chance Joker's there."

Several voices swore over the communicator instantly and as soon as the Clowns were restrained, Cassandra dropped the usual flare on the road for the cops to find before Cassius picked her up and took off with a set of goo wings, streaking across the city. He flew hard and fast, and within four minutes, they landed at the same time as Batman. Cassius smashed the door open instantly, only to stop. They were too late. The Clowns were gone, the words "JOKE'S ON YOU" decorated one wall in green paint, and Jason sat limply, chained to a chair and with blood coating his entire body. His mask was off to one side, covered in blood, his uniform was in tatters from knife wounds, of which there were dozens, enough to be life-threatening, and his entire body had been beaten almost to the point of unrecognizability by a crowbar still lying in the pool of blood around the chair. His arms were both broken multiple times over, Cassius doubted he had a single rib not broken, his legs were broken several times, both knees had been hit directly and inverted, his hands and feet were crushed, and his head had been bashed in on the right side so badly that Cassius wasn't sure if he was seeing flesh, skull, brain, or a mixture of the three in the wound.

Cassandra covered her mouth, but otherwise didn't react, Cassius had to struggle to retrain his rage, Ravager had to look away when she and the others arrived, Barbara began to vomit into the water, and Nightwing began to cry instantly. But not Batman. Batman seemed totally unaffected. Emotionless. He tossed a small bleach bomb capsule into the blood and waited for it to go off before freeing Jason from the chair. Then, he turned, walking outside to the Batmobile in silence, setting Jason in the passenger seat before climbing in.

"Make sure the clowns are all taken to Arkham," Batman said. "I'm returning to the Batcave."

The others all nodded and Batman turned the Batmobile around, driving away. The others all took a few minutes to gather themselves before returning to the various sites of their battles and waiting for the police to finish arresting all of the clowns and take them all to Arkham before returning to the Batcave as well. When they arrived, Batman was sitting in silence in front of the computer, which was displaying an updated personnel file on Jason, including his date of death and how it happened. Nightwing headed upstairs with Barbara, but Rose stopped when she noticed Cassius wasn't leaving right away. Cassius was hesitating, feeling like he should say something to Batman, anything. Instead, Cassandra walked over to Batman and hugged him. For a moment, he didn't react. Then, he broke, holding her and beginning to cry. Rose joined him instantly, also holding him as both girls allowed themselves to cry. Cassius, however, headed up to the mansion, allowing Batman to have privacy to grieve without worrying about judgement.

"I can't..." Tim trailed off, staring at his hands. "How?"

"Joker," Cassius said. "I thought Joker was still at Arkham."

"So did Batman and I," Nightwing said. "There will be a _very_ intensive investigation over this." He curled his hands into fists, then sighed, forcing himself to relax.

"I can't believe it," Tim finally said. "You all seem...invincible."

"We're not," Cassius said. "Any of us could die, just like anybody. This is...a very sobering reminder of that."

"Now what?" Barbara asked.

"Nothing," Nightwing said. "Now we grieve. We just lost a member of our family. Now we take time."

"Not Batman," Cassius said. "He's going after Joker."

Nightwing nodded. "After that's done, he'll grieve."

"He needs a Robin," Tim said. "He can't handle being Batman without a Robin."

"He'll be fine," Nightwing said.

Tim was silent for a few minutes before nodding. "Okay."

They all sat in silence for a few minutes before Cassandra and Rose came up into the mansion, reporting Batman had left to find Joker. Then, they all left to their rooms for what remained of the night, none of them planning to go anywhere tomorrow. Cassius didn't bother to ask Cassandra if she wanted him to stay with her. He knew she'd need him. She always did whenever she saw someone die, and this time it was someone she knew and had grown attached to. So, he walked into his room and held the door open for her, Rose walking in as well.

"Can I stay too?" Rose asked, voice wavering.

"As long as you need," Cassius said gently. "Both of you can."

Both nodded and the girls both changed into their pajamas, uncaring of the fact that he was in the room. Not that it was the first time. Rose had only started doing it about a year ago, after he'd patched her up following a mission with the Team when she got shot in the side and he'd been the only person nearby who could treat her. After having been shirtless in front of him while he tended to her bullet wound for an hour, she hadn't really cared much about being naked around him anymore. Cassandra, on the other hand, had just never started to care since they were nine. She hadn't minded being naked in front of anyone then, and she didn't now. On more than one occasion, he'd had to scold her for walking around either Wayne Manor or the Cave naked when she was just making a quick, late-night trip to the kitchen and back for a glass of milk or water, or a late-night snack. Fortunately, at the Cave, he was usually able to catch her before hand and either make her get dressed, or cover her himself as clothing. At the manor, she usually got away with it before he found out and scolded her after the fact. It never did any good, so when they began to change in front of him this time, he didn't bother saying anything. He simply climbed into bed and waited for them to finish, both girls joining him a few moments later.

* * *

Cassius stared at the floor in silence. Three months. Three months since Jason had been killed by the Joker. Batman had started to slip into his rage and grief within days, so Tim had stolen the Robin costume in order to go after Batman, ending up helping him take down Killer Crock, Mr. Freeze, and Bane all at once, convincing Batman to allow him to keep the mantle of Robin. However, now, barely three months after Jason's death, they'd lost someone else. Tula. The Light had released a powerful and ancient alien known as Tiamat, and in order to stop it, Tula had been forced to trap it in an underwater temple, then collapse it on both of them. Kaldur wasn't taking it well, having still been in love with her, and Tempest was taking it even worse, being Tula's girlfriend. Cassius wasn't expecting either to stay on the team. Tempest looked broken, and Kaldur looked exhausted, and like he had aged a dozen years in a day.

"Too much," Cassandra said softly, from beside Cassius.

"I know," Cassius said, slipping his hand into hers. "I'll pass. I promise. It'll get better."

Cassandra turned into him, not crying, but resting the side of her head against his chest, Cassius softening his armor for her. "Worried."

"They'll be okay," Cassius said. "Eventually."

Cassandra shook her head. "Worried...Cassius."

He smiled, hugging her. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Please," Cassandra whimpered.

He squeezed her lightly. "I promise."

She nodded and after a moment, Rose walked over, having been comforting some of the other girls. Cassius pulled her into a hug without her even having to ask, and she wrapped her arms around them both. After a few minutes of silence, they headed to bed. It was only about ten thirty in the morning, but after the briefing earlier, Kaldur had told them that they were all allowed to have the day to grieve however they needed. Cassius knew without having to ask that the girls wanted to be alone, and that when they slept, at a minimum, Cassandra would need him. So, they headed to his room to grieve privately.

* * *

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	45. Chapter 45

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Complicated

Cassius watched as Tim helped Cassandra up, smiling somewhere between shy and relieved. They'd been fighting Bane's cartel, again, and Cassandra had volunteered to fight Bane. Not a hard task for her, but not one she generally walked away from without getting hit. It _was_ Bane, after all. She hadn't been hurt, of course, but Tim, and the gigantic crush he was developing for her, couldn't help but worry. Cassius rolled his eyes as Tim stumbled over his words, instead going to help Rose, Batgirl, and Cassandra Sandsmark, hero name Wonder Girl restrain the cartel thugs.

"Seriously Bane," Cassius said as he was cuffing him. "How many times do we have to go through this song and dance?"

"At least as many times as I get payed to do it," Bane said.

"Oh, now Bane, you _know_ I have to extract that information from you now," Cassius said, setting him on his knees. "What's it gonna be this time. Truth serum, or a one-on-one match?"

"Neither, niño," Bane smiled. "I'll tell you, free of charge. You see, he payed for my employment, but not my silence."

"Who's he? "Cassius asked.

"El fantasma blanco," Bane grinned.

"El what now?" Wonder Girl asked.

"The White Ghost," Cassius said. "Nemesis."

"Sí, niño," Bane grinned. "Nemesis."

"Where is he?" Cassius asked.

"I don't know," Bane said. "He is a ghost. He dropped off money and instructions without anyone ever knowing he was there."

Cassius nodded and stood, raising a hand to his ear. "We're pulling out, now."

"What's going on?" Nightwing, the current leader ever since Kaldur stepped down after Tula's death, asked.

"Bane says he was hired by Nemesis," Cassius said.

"Understood," Nightwing said. "Everyone pull out."

They all did as instructed, knocking Bane and his cartel out before loading them on the Bio-Ship, then flew them to Belle Reve before returning to the Cave. Cassius, as the temporary leader of the squad sent to deal with Bane, went to debrief Nightwing and Batman. Once he was finished, he left the briefing room, finding Tim and Cassandra together in the kitchen, making a snack together, as they tended to do from time to time. He left them to it, deciding he'd live without grabbing a bite to eat at the moment. He was glad she had finally found someone that might, possibly, maybe be able to win her over. He wasn't going to risk it.

* * *

Cassius read through the list of their newest member, Jaime Reyes's abilities. He had a machine called a scarab attached to his back, which looked about like its name would suggest. It was blue, and when activated, spread blue and black armor over his body, which could then generate basically any kind of weapon Jaime could imagine, from a laser cannon, to a blade, a sonic cannon, a flame thrower, or a giant stable gun. If Jaime could imagine it, the armor could make it.

"Well, I'm not fighting him," Cassius said flatly, passing the list to Nightwing, who laughed.

"That's fair," Nightwing nodded. "We'll figure something out."

Cassius nodded. "Yeah, we'll just have you train him."

Nightwing chuckled. "Suit yourself. So, it's the girls' first mission without you. You worried?"

"Oh, I'm not worried about Cassandra and Rose," Cassius snorted. "They can both handle themselves, and they're taking the entire team, so the Shadows _shouldn't_ try anything, and if they do, I've got Superbike to get me there. No, the only person I'm worried about is whoever has to try and fight Cassandra and Rose."

"You hide it well," Nightwing said.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Cassius said.

Just then, they stepped into the hangar to see the Team off, arriving just in time to see Tim trying desperately to flirt with Cassandra, doing a fairly bad job at it, but Cassandra didn't seem to mind. She was smiling pleasantly, using sign language to talk to him, since Tim still hadn't gotten the hang of figuring out what she was trying to say with her extremely limited vocabulary and still shaky ability to even say the words she knew.

"Hey...um...do you want to go see a movie after the mission?" Tim asked after a minute. "Like at an actual movie theater?"

Cassandra smiled brightly and nodded just as Megan, the leader for the mission, called for everyone to load up. Cassandra ran over to Cassius first, giving him a hug, then signed, "Do you want to come see a movie later?"

Cassius shook his head. "I have something I need to take care of. You go ahead and have fun, though. Just be careful."

Cassandra nodded. "Yes."

"Good luck," Cassius smiled, hugging her then letting her run to the Bio-Ship and climb on before Megan left the hangar.

"You're going to let him steal her, aren't you?" Nightwing asked.

"It's not stealing," Cassius said. "I've told you, time and again, I don't feel that way about them."

"Mhm, sure you don't," Nightwing smirked. "Come on. Let's go and find our fantasma blanco."

"Christ I hope he's face-down in a ditch somewhere," Cassius grumbled as they headed for the briefing room.

"Somehow, I doubt that's the case," Nightwing said.

"You know, surprisingly, so do I," Cassius said.

* * *

Cassius watched Cassandra's eyes light up in joy as she opened his gift to her, pulling out a small bracelet with Jason and Tula's pictures on a pair of beads on it. She wouldn't be able to wear it on missions, but she could wear it in between them just fine. She hugged him and he smiled, hugging her back.

"Thank," Cassandra said.

Cassius squeezed her lightly. Unlike everyone else in the room, Cassius knew she wasn't saying it just as thanks for the bracelet. In the last week, Tim had taken her on two dates, and twice she'd had to be a bit rude by just leaving him as soon as they got back in order to avoid him trying to kiss her, as well as keeping several feet between them during them in order to keep him from trying to during the dates. She appreciated his feelings, but she didn't feel the same, and she felt guilty for not knowing how to tell him, which had put her in a bad mood. The second reason she was thanking Cassius was for making her Birthday as special for her as he could in order to cheer her up.

"Alright!" Megan grinned, standing. "Guess what time it is, Cassandra!"

Cassandra's face lit up instantly just as Artemis and Wally walked in, Artemis carrying a four-tiered marble cake with Cassandra's favorite multi-colored vanilla frosting, toys of all of the members of the Team lining the tears in a mock battle against various villains, and with the words "HAPPY BIRTHDAY CASSANDRA" written across the side of the lower three tiers. Wally, on the other hand, had his arms laden with five one-gallon buckets of ice cream, one vanilla, one chocolate exclusively for Cassandra, one cookie dough, one strawberry, and one coffee. Piled on top of the ice cream jugs were various toppings, which Nightwing took so he could set them down.

Cassius smiled, looking to Cassandra, who was inspecting the fight on the cake, frowning.

"No," Cassandra said, then frowned, wracking her brain. "Lose."

Cassius chuckled, walking over and picking up Deathstroke's toy, wiping the frosting on his feet on her nose, making her recoil and scrunch up her nose.

"You know we never lose," Cassius chuckled. "Besides, how can we lose when we can just throw all of the bad guys in the trash. Or have Rose use them for target practice."

"Oh, can I!?" Rose asked excitedly.

Cassandra laughed, wiping the frosting off her nose and licking it off her finger, nodding. Rose cheered and Cassius laughed, taking the top tier off the cake and putting it on a plate, which he then handed to Cassandra. She grinned widely and hugged him with one arm before snatching up the chocolate ice cream and sitting on the couch. The others all laughed and Cassius quickly served everyone, getting himself some coffee ice cream and a slice once everyone else had been served, then sat beside Cassandra. As she was lifting a spoonful of chocolate ice cream to her mouth, however, he reached over, catching her wrist and pulling her arm over, stealing the ice cream. She pouted and glared at him instantly.

"Thank you so much," he grinned. "That tasted great."

She continued to glare at him so he grinned and reached over, kissing her on the cheek.

"I'll behave," he said.

She glared at him suspiciously for a few more seconds before returning to eating.

"So, Artemis, Wally, how's retirement?" Cassius asked.

"Not bad," Wally said. "But I have to deal with her nagging me constantly."

"I wouldn't nag you so much if you would just do what I say the first time," Artemis said.

Cassius smiled, shaking his head. Both had decided to retire from the team in favor of living together, and now they acted like they were married. They bickered for a few more minutes until Megan used telekinesis to shove a spoonful of ice cream into Wally's mouth and cake into Artemis's, effectively silencing both and getting them to return to eating. After a while, once everyone had eaten and socialized for a bit longer, they all called it a night, heading back to their rooms, Cassandra going with Cassius, as was becoming usual again recently. Also as usual, she changed after she was in his room, Cassius lying in bed and facing away from her, as he always did when she or Rose did that. After a few minutes, she rolled him onto his back and lay down beside him, resting her head on his chest. He smiled, wrapping his arms around her, but after a couple minutes, she pushed herself up enough to look up at him. He looked down at her curiously, seeing the indecision in her eyes. He swallowed, suspecting what she was thinking.

"Can I ask for one more present?" Cassandra signed.

"What do you want?" Cassius asked, though he knew from Cassandra's expression that she could tell he knew exactly what.

So, instead of signing anything, she simply leaned down, pressing her lips to his. Cassius had thought he was prepared, and would be able to either push her away gently, or else let her have it, but then tell her that it was only because it was her birthday and he didn't feel the same. At the very least, he had thought he'd know how to react. But he was wrong. As soon as she kissed him, his stomach twisted into a dozen agonizing knots, his heart skipped several beats, and a stuttering breath slipped out of his mouth. His body returned the kiss instantly, but after a couple of seconds, his brain caught up to his reaction and he pressed against her shoulders gently. Cassandra pulled away, smiling.

"I'm sorry," he said. "I...I shouldn't have let you do that. I don't feel that way about you, Cassandra. I'm sorry."

She smiled, shaking her head, then signed, "It's okay. I know you don't. Thank you for letting me have my one wish for my birthday, and for making it feel real."

He swallowed hard and nodded, smiling. "You're welcome. Now, you should go to sleep."

Cassandra nodded, laying her head down and snuggling into him, Cassius holding her tightly, then swallowing hard, trying to force himself to do the same.

* * *

Cassius looked around, seeing Cassandra and Tim sitting together in the living room, watching a movie, Tim's arm along the back of the couch behind Cassandra, not around her shoulders, but enough for him to be happy. Cassius returned his attention to the matter at hand, grabbing a soda out of the refrigerator. He headed back to his room, where he'd decided to have a lazy day, only to find Rose already there.

"Hey, what's up?" Cassius asked.

"Did you kiss Cassandra the other day?" Rose asked.

He frowned. "Sort of. She kissed me, technically, but close enough."

Rose nodded to herself. "I thought so."

Then, she stepped forward, pushing him back against the door and kissing him. He sucked in a surprised breath as his heart again skipped a beat and his stomach again twisted into knots. Then, he pushed her back, letting out a shaky breath and swallowing hard.

"Why did you do that?" Cassius asked.

"Because I wanted to," Rose said simply. "Don't worry. I just wanted the one."

Then, she slipped out past him. He sighed heavily, kneeling and picking up the soda he'd dropped, holding it to his head in hopes that the cold would help stave off the same headache he'd developed after Cassandra kissed him. It didn't.

* * *

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	46. Chapter 46

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Interstellar Mission

Cassius watched calmly as Nightwing hurled La'gaan, winning the match.

"Neptune's beard!" La'gaan said, thumping a fist on the ground. "You did it to me again!" He accepted Nightwing's help up. I don't care how many years you trained as Robin and then as Nightwing. One of these days, you're _my_ chum."

"I don't doubt it, Lagoon Boy," Nightwing said.

"Recognize Superboy, B-Zero-Four, Miss Martian, B-Zero-Six, Orphan, B-One-Zero Bumblebee, B-One-eight, Beast Boy, B-Two-Zero, Robin, B-Two-one, Blue Beetle, B-Two-Three," the computer announced as the group, labelled Delta team for their mission to catch Clayface, appeared in the Zeta tube. Bumblebee, who had a suit that could shrink her body, returned to her normal size just in time for her boyfriend, Mal Duncan, the Team's new Mission Control, to walk over to talk to her. Cassandra, who Tim was in the middle of talking to, ran over to hug Cassius instantly, Cassius hugging her back, smiling.

"How'd it go?" Cassius asked.

"Good," Cassandra said, then signed, "Connor, Megan, and Tim had dealt with him before the rest of us arrived. And no sign of Shadows."

"Good," Cassius said, just as Megan and La'gaan began to make out, Connor walking past them silently.

His and Megan's breakup had _not_ been pleasant. However, both were handling it fairly well. Megan was using La'gaan as a rebound, and a little bit to make Connor jealous, and Connor was using Cassius to vent his anger and frustration about it, since Cassius could take it."

"Mind a spar later?" Connor asked as he was passing Cassius.

"Sure," Cassius nodded, then looked back to Cassandra. "So, any plans for tonight?"

"Tim asked me out to dinner," Cassandra signed.

"Oh," Cassius said, trying not to frown, though she saw it anyway. "Well, I hope you have a good time. I'm going to head over to visit Evaline's grave after I spar with Connor. I thought maybe we could stop by your dad's, but I can take you to see him some other time."

Cassandra shook her head instantly. "Yes."

"You sure?" Cassius asked. "What about Tim?"

"I can reschedule with him," Cassandra signed, smiling, then turned to Tim, who was talking to Nightwing.

As he finished, he turned to her, probably meaning to talk about that, only to stop as he saw the apologetic smile on her face. "You want to go some other time?"

"Sorry," Cassandra said.

"It's alright," Tim said. "Have fun."

"I'll try," Cassandra signed.

Cassius smiled and they headed toward the room, only for Captain Atom to call with an emergency alert about the United Nations building being attacked. Nightwing told him Beta Squad was nearby and would be there in three minutes and Captain Atom nodded and disconnected.

"What're they going to fight?" Cassius asked, walking over with Cassandra.

"Not sure," Nightwing said. "We'll know when they get there. I'm sure Ravager will be fine, though."

"I don't doubt it," Cassius said, hands gripping his opposite biceps a little tighter. "I still want to know who they're up against."

Cassandra tugged his legs arm down by the elbow, lacing her fingers with his. He smiled, giving her hand a light squeeze and turned her attention to the screen where Nightwing was just pulling up several security feeds from the embassy, showing a white-skinned, black-haired alien bounty hunter named Lobo working his way calmly through the guards. Lobo was a powerful foe who went toe-to-toe with Superman from time to time and always gave him a hard time.

"Heads up, Beta," Nightwing said. "It's Lobo."

"Understood," Barbara said. "Wonder Girl went on ahead. She'll stall until we get there."

"Be careful," Cassius said. "Don't forget, Lobo has given Superman a run for his money in the past."

"We'll be fine," Rose said.

"Still be careful," Cassius said.

Beta went silent and after a few seconds, they watched as Batgirl and Rose escorted Secretary General Tseng into a concealed elevator while Wonder Girl tried to delay Lobo. She didn't last long, however, and Lobo smashed the elevator door open and dropped, crushing the elevator less than three seconds after the girls and Tseng left it. Batgirl used a purple smoke bomb to obscure Lobo's sight and Rose hurled an electrified bolo at him, only for him to let it wrap around his arm, then rip it off and follow them. When they reached the assembly building, Lobo caught up with them and Batgirl and Rose tried to stall him, as did Wonder Girl a moment later, only for Lobo to hurl Wonder Girl into Batgirl, then backhand Rose and knock her out. Then, he leapt across the room to land in front of Tseng just before he could escape, then picked him up by the arms and pulled, splitting his upper body in half the long way. Except, it was a robot with a small, greenish yellow, imp-looking alien seated in a miniature chair inside, the alien about as tall as Cassius's forearm, he was pretty sure, if that. Lobo had then taken the alien alive, told the girls that their world was theirs, and left on a flying bike.

"What the fuck just happened?" Cassius asked.

"I have no fucking idea," Nightwing said.

"Tell me Tseng hasn't been an alien this entire time," Cassius said.

"I have no fucking idea," Nightwing said again. "Go spar with Connor to calm him down. Be back in time for the briefing once the rest of the Team gets back."

"Understood," Cassius nodded.

He and Cassandra headed to Connor's room, and Cassius gave him the short version. Connor was about as confused as Cassius, but they headed outside anyway to spar for a few minutes, both beating each other brutally, as always, until Connor called it about twenty minutes later. Then, they headed back inside just in time for the brief, finding Batman present. Batgirl explained what had happened on their mission, and Nightwing played the security footage of Lobo exposing the alien.

"The League will look into it," Batman finally said. "Have everyone be ready for any missions that come up. There's a good chance we'll be sending you somewhere."

Everyone agreed and once Batman was gone, Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose all changed and left, telling Nightwing where they were heading on the way out. Cassius flew the girls to his wife's grave first, buying some flowers as they walked through town before setting them on the grave and spending a few minutes telling his family about what had gone on since he last visited. Then, once he was done, he flew them to where Cassius had found Cain's grave for Cassandra. They'd been caught there by Lady Shiva once but she had agreed not to attack them there. Cassandra sat in front of the grave in silence for a while, as she usually did. Cassius understood why. What she wanted to say was for Cain only, and she didn't know how to say it anyway. Finally, she stood and nodded and Cassius picked them both up, flying back tot he Cave. Then, the three of them headed to bed for the night.

* * *

Cassius frowned as he stepped up next to the others. The small alien had been identified as Krolotean, a race that built its culture off of stolen technology and that always travelled in massive groups, meaning the one that controlled the robot Tseng was not the only one. The scientist that maintained the Zeta tubes, Adam Strange, had told the League he was accidentally brought to a planet called Rann where he met a scientist there who told him about the Kroloteans, and that they had stolen his Zeta tube technology, then had given Strange a way to track the Kroloteans. The League had decided to split both the League and the Team between the fourteen locations on Earth, with one group from the Team going to Rann to find the Kroloteans at the one and only site there. It had originally been planned for the League to go, but Strange had informed them that not only were humans not a favorite species in that region of space at the moment, but that six of the Justice League members, the exact same six that had been unaccounted for during a sixteen hour span of time while Savage was controlling them, were wanted criminals, and that every Leaguer had a watch order and standing orders to be arrested. So, the Team was selected to go. As such, he, Cassandra, Rose, Strange, Connor, Megan, and Beast Boy were all about to be sent to Rann by Zeta tube.

"Is everyone ready?" Strange asked.

"We're ready," Megan nodded.

Strange typed the coordinates on the control panel and the Zeta tube activated, leaving them on a platform on Rann, which Strange explained was an advanced version of the Zeta tube. They all looked around at the world around them. They were on top of what Cassius would definitely call a mansion, a huge, round one with a building to their right, then more buildings far below them, and the entire world around them being a huge forest of trees with extremely dark, almost black, bark and some with orangish red leaves and others with dark purple.

"Whoa," Beast Boy said, looking around at the trees.

"Zeta squad, welcome to Rann," Strange said, leading them to a stairway off to the left heading up to a walkway leading to the building to their right, wrapping around behind the Zeta platform.

As they got to the top of the walkway, Cassius stopped, staring at a massive city of tall, pure white towers in the distance. Beast Boy's jaw dropped, his eyes darting from the city to the green moon just above the mountain range horizon behind it

"Whoa," Beast Boy said again. "I'm totally walking on an alien planet! Oh, Sis, you must say that like every day on Earth!" He looked to Megan expectantly.

"Actually, I kinda do," Megan said, ruffling his hair.

"Wait, we can breathe the air here, right?" Beast Boy asked, holding his hands to his throat.

"Only if you're at least fourteen years old," Cassius said, Beast Boy rolling his eyes.

"Adam!" a feminine voice off to one side called out. "Adam!"

They turned to the girl running toward them as she began to speak in her native language, probably welcoming them and asking who everyone but Adam was. She had pale, slightly yellow skin, blue eyeshadow-like markings under her eyes shaped like inverted shark fins, pointed ears, black hair, a blue tiara-like headdress framing her face with a pair of yellow lines reaching outward from the front on top and curling at the outside ends, a yellow cape, a blue shirt with three-quarter sleeves, black pants, and blue knee-high boots.

"Oh, great!" Strange smiled. "I think." he turned tot he Cassius and the others as a bald Rannian with a white lab coat and green goggles reached them too. "Zeta Squad, these are my Rannian friends, Sardath," he held a hand out to the bald Rannian, "and his daughter, Alanna." He smiled at her fondly, his voice betraying his attraction to her heavily as he introduced her. After a moment, he stepped back, beginning to try and introduce them in Rannian, saying they were from Earth.

Once he was done, Sardath welcomed them, Cassius only understanding the word Earthlings, Adam, and Zeta. He asked them a question, but when everyone turned to Strange, he shrugged.

"I'm sill learning the language," Strange said. "This is usually where we start playing charades."

"Megan, would you mind?" Cassius asked.

"Not at all," Megan said, her eyes glowing green as she linked everyone but Cassandra, including the two Rannians, both of whom cringed at the unfamiliar feeling.

"What was that?" Alanna muttered to her father, Megan allowing everyone to understand them, despite their languages differing.

"Such an odd sensation," Sardath shrugged.

"Wait, you're speaking English!" Strange said excitedly, walking over to them.

"Not quite," Cassius said. "I had Megan link us all mentally, so now we can understand each other despite speaking different languages."

"I'm serving as a...sort of like a psychic translator," Megan said. "They speak Rannian, we speak English, but we all hear the language we understand."

"What an amazing ability," Sardath said.

"That will make communicating so much easier!" Alanna said, smiling up at Strange.

"Speaking of different languages, Megan would you mind teaching me Rannian?" Cassius asked.

"Sure," Megan nodded. "Sardath, Alanna, who you two mind if I copied your memories of your language to Cassius's mind so he can speak it if our connection's broken?"

"You can do that?" Strange asked.

"It's painful for the person receiving the language, and uncomfortable for the people giving it," Cassius said. "It'll feel like you just felt, but about ten seconds long."

The two Rannians grimaced, then nodded.

"Gently, Megan," Cassius said.

"I will," Megan said, her eyes glowing green.

Both Rannians cringed again, gritting their teeth and remaining like that for about ten seconds before relaxing.

"Sorry about that," Megan said. "Are you two okay?"

"Yes," Alanna said. "Not a very pleasant experience."

"Better to be giving the language than receiving it," Cassius said, face scrunched up in a constant wince, one hand held to his head. "And if there were only one, that'd be double the amount of time it took to copy the language."

"What a pleasant thought," Sardath said, just before what sounded like a sort of police siren grew louder, then faded again. "Perhaps we should take this inside. It is wise to use caution when harboring Earthlings."

"Excellent idea," Cassius said.

They took an elevator inside, and as soon as they stepped out, they found a green animal that had what looked like a cross between a reptile and a bird. It had a lizard-like body, a long, pointed snout, two small bone spikes on top of the snout, the one in front slightly longer than the one behind it, a pair of horns, a line of short, soft-looking, light green spines around the top and sides of its skull behind its horns, small bone spikes running along its back, and a pair of green feathered wings.

"Alien animalage!" Beast Boy cheered, running forward on his monkey-like arms and legs. "Cool!"

Cassius wasn't entirely sure why Beast Boy always kept himself looking like a cross between a West African Green Monkey and a Martian, except with his fur and hair all a dark forest green and his skin the same shade of light green as Megan's usual form. However, Beast Boy seemed to enjoy it, so he never really gave it much thought.

"Sardath, have you learned anything more about why Earthlings are unwelcome in this corner of the Galaxy?" strange asked as they were walking through the house.

Sardath sighed heavily. "The Rannian Science Command was xenophobic in general, which is why my research into interplanetary Zeta beam travel has been conducted quietly."

"And why you haven't reported the theft of your technology," Strange realized.

"Exactly," Sardath said. "If Science Command learned I had made it possible for aliens, especially you Earthlings, to Zeta here to Rann, the consequences could be dire for myself _and_ my daughter."

"Well, Megan and I can disguise ourselves as Rannians," Cassius said. "The others can all remain unseen."

"That is good," Sardath nodded.

"I still don't get it," Connor said. "Why the big hate for Earthlings? How do they even know any Earthlings _too_ hate?"

Alanna reached over to a small triangular device with the corners missing, touching the top of it with her hand, the top opening in three plates, a holographic yellow screen forming over it, cycling through the six Leaguers who had gone missing, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Hawkwoman, Martian Manhunter, and the Green Lantern, John Stewart.

"I assume Adam showed you this," Alanna said. "We are still unclear on the details."

"Science Command is not inclined to share intelligence with its people," Sardath said.

"But we have learned there was an incident on the planet Rimbor involving Earthling criminals known as the Justice League," Alanna said.

"I assume you are not associated with these outlaws," Sardath said.

"We are not members of the League," Megan said, leaving out the fact that she and Connor both had open invitations to reserved seats on the League.

"Only these six were on Rimbor," Sardath said, pulling up the images of the six Leaguers. "Since then, the Kroloteans have posted planetary watch alerts for every member of the League."

Cassius's eyes narrowed slightly, Cassandra tensing, and Strange stepped forward, eyes wide with surprise and confusion.

"The Kroloteans!" Strange said. "_That's _who stole your Zeta platform tech! They used it to secretly invade Earth, which is how they found out about the other Leaguers!"

"I know," Sardath said. "I told _you_ that the last time you were here."

"Of course!" Strange said, thumping his forehead with the heel of his hand. "Kroloteans! I misunderstood you! I thought it was just the Rannian word for thief."

"It might as well be," Alanna said.

"Yeah, Krolotean culture revolves around stolen tech," Connor said. "We heard. Question is, what do we do about it."

"I'm in favor of either smashing their stolen tech, or stealing it back," Cassius spoke up.

"My father's Zeta Shield will help," Alanna said, typing on the triangle device's controls.

"_If_ I can perfect the design," Sardath said. "Your primitive Zeta _tubes_ would still work within the confines of the Earth's atmosphere, but unauthorized travel to and from other worlds would become impossible. In short, this shield will prevent more Kroloteans from invading your world via Zeta beam while trapping any still entrenched there."

"And in the mean time, Adam tells us you've located the Krolotean Zeta platform here on Rann?" Megan asked.

"Indeed," Sardath said. "But the jungles of Rann can be dangerous. You Earthlings will need a guide."

"I'll go Father," Alanna volunteered. "You must complete your work on the Zeta Shield."

"The transportation out of the city of Ranagar is also not without risks, Alanna," Sardath said. "We must disguise these Earthlings."

"Look, enough of this Earthlings thing," Connor said. "I'm half-Kryptonian and Miss Martian is...Martian."

"You came here from Earth, did you not?" Sardath asked.

"Yeah, but we're not..." Connor sighed heavily. "Nevermind."

Cassius shrugged, transforming into goo and back, leaving him as a Rannian with short, pale green hair, violet eyes, and clothes similar to Alanna's but dark grey and slightly less form-fitting.

"How do I look?" Cassius asked.

"Very good," Sardath said.

Megan shifted into a Rannian with black eyes, a tight black long-sleeved shirt and cloth over the top of her head with green hair in a ponytail showing behind the cloth, a white short-sleeved dress over the black one and a gold belt. Connor was given a red robe with a hood and a black diamond with a circle missing from the center on the front, a loose gold belt, and a brown belt. Beast Boy shifted into the same type of creature as Sardath had for a pet. Strange was given a red robe with white on the hood, an "X" across the chest, a white belt that bent down in a "V" in front, and a pair of yellow boots and gloves. Cassandra and Rose Cassius gave some of his goo as full-body disguises, making them look like Rannian children, with Sardath and Alanna's directions for appearance and clothing. Then, they all headed to the train stop, waiting for it to arrive before loading up and finding seats.

* * *

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	47. Chapter 47

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Sideways

Cassius used his goo to open the train's doors for them. Strange had been forced to ditch as soon as they were on the train in order to distract a Science Command patrol and get them off the train, which he had done by quoting the old Alice in Wonderland book series, then flew away with his jetpack to return to Sardath. When Alanna had said goodbye by holding his hands and very clearly displaying that she had feelings for him, Megan and Connor had gotten uncomfortable about it, so, Beast Boy had begun trying to remind them of when they had been together in a naïve, if sweet, attempt to fix their shattered relationship, succeeding only in getting Connor mad, and making both Connor and Megan uncomfortable. However, before it could become a problem, Alanna had informed them they were close enough to the target to leave the train.

Alanna left the train first with her backpack, then Megan and beast Boy followed, as both could fly themselves, and Superboy leapt out. Cassius, Cassandra, and Rose all jumped as well, the girls using their grappling guns to swing to the ground safely as Cassius used a strand of goo to do the same. Once they were on the ground, Cassius reclaimed his goo from the girls' disguises and both pulled their masks on. Almost as soon as they were on the ground, Beast Boy moved to grab a plant in the middle of a small patch of blue sand as a souvenir, only for Alanna to catch him by the tail and pull him back, then toss a stick forward into the sand. It was swallowed by the sand instantly, which let out a noise that Cassius was quite certain was a burp, before violet flames burst to life across the sand.

"Blue sand bog," Alanna said. "Deadly." She leaned down beside him, arms crossed. "Basically, if it looks pretty, don't touch."

"Noted," Beast Boy said.

They continued through the jungle, passing several blue sand bogs, as well as several other deadly traps and plants, before finally stopping as they found a building half-reclaimed by the jungle. It looked to Cassius like a military airplane hangar with a curved roof, round towers along the walls that were only slightly taller than the building and would make excellent sniper towers or machinegun positions, and the entire building was hundreds of meters long.

_"It's bigger than I anticipated,"_ Megan said. _"Even this far out in the jungle, how could something of this size have been built without the Science Command knowing about it?"_

_"Maybe it wasn't," _Cassius said._ "Or, rather, maybe they _do_ know about it."_

_"It's possible,"_ Connor agreed.

_"I'm going in," _Megan said, pulling her hood up and cloaking herself._ "I'll send you an image of where to rendezvous."_

After a few moments, they got an image of a round hole in the ceiling.

_"I found your entrance,"_ Megan said, everyone heading up to the opening instantly before crouching around it. _"All clear."_

She floated them all in silently, then off to the side where they were out of sight. Cassius shifted himself into a Krolotean instantly, as Beast Boy became a Green Monkey.

_"Maybe you should stay the bird thing,"_ Cassius suggested. _"Or try for a Krolotean."_

_"Six Zeta platforms?"_ Alanna said as Beast Boy waved Cassius off.

_"Not for long,"_ Connor said, setting down his backpack and pulling out a box of explosives. _"These are small-target explosives. Should permanently disable the platforms without blowing the whole base. Three-minute triggers will give us plenty of time to get out before the Kroloteans know what hit them."_

_"Beast Boy, Cassius, and I will plant them,"_ Megan said, using her telekinesis to pass two to Beast Boy and Cassius, keeping two for herself. _"You two wait here."_

The others nodded and Cassius absorbed the two black semi-spheres he'd been given into his body before Megan flew him and Beast Boy down to the ground below the platforms out of sight. Beast Boy headed for his two quickly while Megan flew toward hers and Cassius walked calmly toward his chosen two. No one gave him a sideways look, and as he was passing one of the platforms, he flicked his right hand, ejecting an explosive onto the pipe under the platform.

_"One placed,"_ Cassius reported.

_"Same," _Beast Boy said.

_"My two are in place,"_ Megan said.

_"That's two for me,"_ Cassius reported as he placed his second and headed toward where Beast Boy should be finishing.

_"All set, now let's blow this popsicle s-"_ He was cut off by an alert beginning to shriek.

"Incoming Zeta-transmission!" One of the Kroloteans shouted, Cassius able to understand it for reasons he couldn't understand, that understanding transferring across the telepathic link "Raise the antennae!"

_"Oh, I guess I can understand them if I turn into one,"_ Cassius said.

A metal tower in the center of the room rose, the hole they'd entered through opening and immediately being plugged by the antenna.

_"The escape route's blocked!" _Alanna said worriedly. _"We're trapped inside with the bombs!"_

_"Joy," _Cassius sighed internally._ "Fire."_

_"We can cause a distraction,"_ Rose volunteered.

_"No," _Cassius said. _"I can. At a minimum, I can fake an attack by a goo monster to give you all a chance to break out through the wall."_

_"You'll still be here with the bombs,"_ Megan pointed out.

_"Not once I follow you out through the hole as a retreat from the Krolotean counterattack,"_ Cassius said, already heading to the opposite side of the room from Connor and the others.

Just then, the base of the antenna lit up before all of the Zeta platforms began to activate, Kroloteans appearing in massive groups on each.

_"The raids have started,"_ Cassius said. _"We're late. Now or never."_

"Sir, what happened?" the Krolotean who had announced the others' arrival, and who wore a strap across his chest, asked an arriving Krolotean who wore a similar strap.

"The Meta-Earthlings drove us back here," that one reported.

_"Times up," _Cassius said. _"Bombs going off in T-minus ten."_

_"When the bombs blow, use the chaos to charge through the front door,"_ Megan said. _"Cassius, can you find a place to cause a distraction without getting blown up?"_

_"Way ahead of you," _Cassius said, waiting behind a support pillar that should protect him from the explosions.

Just as he stepped behind it, the explosions began, hurling Kroloteans, dropping Zeta platforms off of their pillars, and causing absolute chaos.

_"Beast Boy!" _Megan gasped, Beast Boy having been too close to a bomb when they went off as well. _"Gar! Are you alright!?"_

_"Yeah, yeah," _Beast Boy said, pushing himself up and holding his head. _"I'm good, go!"_

_"And...action!"_ Cassius said, running out just as the Kroloteans who weren't knocked out by the blast began to look around for the culprit. "Monster!"

Kroloteans spun instantly, just in time for the goo Cassius had chasing him to send out a tentacle, catching him and dragging him back into the massive, shifting, writhing goo creature he'd formed, which had a mouth full of sharp teeth and a pair of beady, glowing red eyes surrounded by a sea of goo tentacles. He took a second to reorient himself to being the goo monster rather than the still-screaming Krolotean body he was reabsorbing, then stopped the screaming in favor of a wet, bubbling snarl and a vibrating roar. His tentacles lashed out, smashing the floor, hurling Kroloteans around, and even carefully grabbed a Zeta platform that wasn't on fire, the only one that wasn't, and hurled it into the front door, smashing it wide open while grabbing several awake Kroloteans and hurling them, keeping the others' attention squarely on himself as the others all fled.

The Kroloteans began to screech orders instantly and Cassius hurled a Krolotean grunt into him, sending both bouncing away. More Kroloteans swarmed him, some armed with blunt objects, other firing energy weapons. Cassius began to move as soon as the shooting started, streaking from one spot to the next, never staying still for long and scattering any Kroloteans he passed. A couple shots managed to hit him and burned him slightly, but he healed quickly. It wasn't fire, and the burns were basically superficial. Then, just as he was beginning to run out of targets, the leader and a handful of other Kroloteans all jumped into a hole that suddenly opened in the floor. A moment later, a massive, quadrupedal machine of some kind with two massive, blocky, mounted weapons on the top and a glowing green circular observation port, or maybe camera, rose from the hole.

_"Megan, are you still in range?"_ Cassius asked, launching himself to the side as the weapons fired a pair of bright orange energy beams.

He avoided the shot, and the massive fiery explosion it set off, but the concussion hurled him. As soon as he landed he cut his losses. He launched himself onto the front of the four-legged tank, rocking it backward and blinding it, then to the front door, streaking down the hallway and narrowly avoiding a second blast before compressing himself into his fastest goo form, one similar to his strongest combat form that he used to spar Connor and had learned against Nemesis, but this form had digitigrade legs and enough leg strength to kick through the side of a tank. As soon as he was in that form and his feet hit the ground, he was off, streaking along the short tunnel and out of the facility.

_"M'gann M'orzz!"_ Cassius shouted in his head as he streaked through the jungle in the general direction of the city.

An explosion lit up the jungle behind him and he pushed himself harder, flashing through the trees, leaping over blue sand bogs, and dodging around poisonous plants. Then, finally, he found them. In fact, he crashed headlong into Connor.

"There you are!" Connor said, standing and lifting him as he returned to his normal form. "What's-"

"Tank!" Cassius said. "Run!"

They scattered instantly, Cassius feeling Megan reconnect Cassius to their link as they ran. Less than a second after they scattered, an explosion went off where they'd been. Then, another, albeit smaller, blast hit Alanna's jetpack and it malfunctioned, spiraling into the air before she dropped it, falling before it exploded. Connor caught her, only to get blasted in the back, going flying. He crashed down hard, skidding to a stop clinging to the top of a cliff with his left hand while holding Alanna up with his right, only to drop as the tank all but sprinted toward them, then leapt after them. Just as it did, Cassius's massively-expanded goo hands caught it by the sides and he shouted in effort, hurling it away, then dove off the cliff before the tank blasted it where he was, Cassius narrowly escaping the explosion. Before he could worry about landing, Cassandra swung past, catching him, then swung to a hole in the cliff face and landed inside of it, both sprinting away from the opening and found Rose inside already, blood coating the side of her face.

"What happened?" Cassius asked, glancing at Cassandra.

"A rock hit her head," Cassandra signed.

Cassius nodded, using Rose's own sleeve to wipe the blood away before using goo to bandage the wound, his goo also stitching it closed, since he knew she'd need it later anyway. She didn't scream in pain, but the pain _did_ wake her. She smiled up at him and sighed.

"I think it's safe to say this mission went sideways fast," Rose said.

"Very," Cassius nodded. "I think I can break it, if I can reach it without worrying about being blasted."

Just then, Cassandra knocked on the wall of the cave, near the opening, and Cassius walked over and looked down, seeing two walking past below them. He sighed.

"Figures," Cassius sighed. "There are at least two. Maybe more."

_"Zeta, report,"_ Megan said. _"Are you-"_

_"Safe, for now,"_ Connor interrupted. _"I'm with Alanna."_

_"Orphan, Ravager, and I are in a gave partway up a cliff,"_ Cassius reported. _"Ravager took a blow to the head and probably has a concussion, but Orphan and I are unharmed. The three of us aren't in any immediate danger. You?"_

_"We lost 'em,"_ Megan said. _"Beast Boy and I are both unharmed."_

_"Now can we blow this popsicle stand?"_ Beast Boy asked.

_"Now we stay put,"_ Megan said. _"Give their patrols a chance to move on. We'll meet up below the mag rail when it's safe."_

_"And then regroup with Adam and my father to determine what to do about this Krolotean base," _Alanna added.

_"M'gann...be careful,"_ Connor said.

_"You too, Connor,"_ Megan replied before the connection went silent.

He walked deeper into the cave, sitting against the wall and glancing at the girls. Rose had her eyes closed and might have been sleeping. Cassandra was staring into space, holding her locket.

"Are you okay?" Cassius signed.

Cassandra smiled and nodded. "I'm fine. Just thinking."

"Anything important?" Cassius signed.

"Not really," Cassandra signed. "I don't think I ever told Tim when we'd have the chance to go to dinner. Are you sure you don't want to come?"

Cassius smiled. "I'm sure. You two have fun."

"Oh, it's not going to be us two," Cassandra signed. "I'm going to bring Rose, and I'm going to invite some of the others."

"Do you not want to be alone with Tim?" Cassius signed. "Did he do something?"

"No," Cassandra signed. "He didn't do anything. I just...don't like him the way he likes me. I'm happy," she paused. "Wrong word."

"Flattered," Cassius signed. "It means you appreciate someone doing, thinking, or saying something that has to do with you and is nice or sweet."

Cassandra nodded and signed, "I'm flattered, but I don't want to give him the wrong impression by mistake by going with just us, then hurting him by making him think I feel the same."

Cassius nodded, then looked toward the mouth of the cave, his thoughts warring for no apparent reason and no discernable sides. Finally, he signed, "Don't do anything you're uncomfortable with, and explain to him before you go anywhere with him that you don't feel the same. But...going to dinner or the movies with just the two of you will give you the chance to see if you might feel that way about him without realizing it, or maybe you'd start to like him back."

Cassandra frowned, signing, "I don't want to feel that way about him. I feel that way about you."

Cassius sighed. He ran a hand through his hair for a moment as he decided what to say. "I know you care about me, but I can't return your feelings. You should try to find someone else you can care about. It doesn't have to be Tim, but I'm not the right person for you."

"I don't care," Cassandra signed.

Cassius sighed just as he felt the link go dead. "Something's wrong."

Rose's eye opened instantly and she stood, pulling her mask back on as Cassandra did the same, all three heading for the mouth of the cave. Cassius picked up the girls and climbed to the top of the cliff and stopped, all three staring at the fortress, which was now hovering in the air as a complete ship, round and long, like a maggot. The tanks were all headed for it, and just as Cassius and the girls began to run, Connor landed beside them, setting Alanna down, all of them running along together.

"Something's happened to Megan," Connor said.

"She probably got caught," Cassius said.

"Has your friend been captured?" Alanna asked in Rannian.

"I think so," Cassius replied in the same, Alanna nodding.

"I'm glad I allowed you to have a copy of my memory of our language," Alanna said.

"So am I," Cassius said, just as they spotted three tanks up ahead. "Connor and I will take point. You hang back with Rose." He switched back to English as Alanna nodded. "Connor, take the first. I'll take the second, then Cassandra, Rose, and Alanna can distract the third for you."

"Right," Connor nodded.

"Don't damage the front of the main body," Cassius warned. "When the one in the Zeta platform room attacked me, I slammed into the front of it and it felt hollow. I think that's where they keep captives."

Connor nodded and the girls all scattered as they caught up with the first tank. Connor shot forward, grabbing one of its legs and yanked it backward before ripping the legs off, Cassius breaking off the guns before launching himself to the next and slashing off all four legs with goo claws, then the guns. Then, a strand of goo attached to a tree and yanked him out of sight before the third could fire just before Cassandra hurled an explosive disk into the tank's side. It began to turn and Rose hurled one into its back. As it began to turn again, Alanna landed on top of it, placing an explosive on each gun, just before Cassius yanked her off with a goo strand, allowing the bombs to destroy its guns. Then, Connor exploded down on the tank, ripping the glass dome over the controls off and lifting out the Krolotean commander. Cassius stepped up to the tank in front and shoved goo into a seam in a metal dome just below Connor, then spread his arms, shoving the door open and revealing Megan and Beast Boy, both unconscious.

"Bingo," Cassius said, growing a pair of goo arms to lift them out carefully.

"Connor," Megan groaned.

Cassius swapped Connor Megan for the Krolotean just as Beast Boy stirred. Cassius set him on his feet as the other two joined them. Just then, the ship above them began to fire down at them and Connor pulled the tank into the way, everyone ducking down behind it.

"They _still_ trying to capture us, or is it just a bitter revenge thing now?" Beast Boy asked.

"Either way, we discourage them," Connor said. "Game?"

"Me?" Beast Boy grinned. "I'm _big_ game."

"Take care of her," Connor said to Alanna.

"We'll be back soon," Cassius said in Rannian. "Rose and Cassandra will stay with you."

Alanna nodded and Cassius looked to the other girls, both of whom nodded, already knowing their job.

"Connor, I'm hitching a ride," Cassius said.

"Right," Connor nodded as Cassius formed over Connor's shirt.

Then, Connor ran out of cover and hurled Beast Boy, who smashed into the ship before Connor leapt to one of the guns, Cassius leaving him a second before Connor smashed it. Cassius slipped in through the hole Beast Boy had made and reformed as himself in his armor, complete with his mask, and looked around. Beast Boy was a gorilla, hurling tanks around and destroying anything he could, so, Cassius encased his arms in goo and began to help. As Connor reached them they'd already cleared out the hangar-like room they were in.

"Kid, you may just change my mind about monkeys yet," Connor said.

Beast Boy laughed, sounding every bit like a gorilla. They continued to destroy anything they could, and after a particularly violent string of explosions, the ship began to rise.

"Time to go!" Connor said, all three leaping out.

Connor landed heavily, and Cassius and Beast Boy both flew down, Beast Boy as his new winged reptile form and Cassius with a set of goo wings. However, as they landed, there was a Krolotean lying comatose on the ground and Megan was holding the Krolotean commander's sash.

"Oh shit," Cassius breathed.

He looked to Cassandra, and she looked to Megan.

"You okay?" Connor asked.

"Fine," Megan said, holding up the sash. "Got this for Beast Boy." She tossed it to him, and he grinned widely.

"Souvenir," Beast Boy said excitedly. "Sweet!"

"Where did that come-" Connor trailed off as he saw two more Kroloteans lifting their vegetative commander. _"Megan what did you-"_

_"Nevermind that right now," _Megan interrupted. "We have to get back to Earth."

Connor narrowed his eyes.

"I know what the Justice League did on Rimbor," Megan said. "I know what happened during their missing sixteen hours."

Cassius grit his teeth, looking to the retreating Kroloteans for a moment before sighing. "She's right. If she really knows, that's the most important thing right now. And the facility we were sent to destroy just flew away, so now there's no reason to stay."

"Fine," Connor growled. "But this isn't over."

Megan watched him for a moment before turning and walking away, the others all following.

* * *

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	48. Chapter 48

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Remembering

Cassius watched the group leave. Tim wasn't happy about it being more than just him and Cassandra, but he was trying his best not to be angry. Once they were gone, Cassius turned, walking to the sparring ring. Within seconds, Nightwing stepped into it with him, smirking knowingly.

"Try not to break me," Nightwing requested.

"I'll do my best," Cassius said flatly.

Nightwing charged first, punching at Cassius, who knocked it aside, snapping a roundhouse kick up at him. Nightwing dropped under the kick and Cassius flipped over his leg sweep. Then, as Cassius landed and Nightwing spun to punch at him, it was suddenly Nemesis.

Nemesis shot out from between the buildings in the blink of an eye, his fist exploding into Copycat's jaw, less than a second before he could finish restraining Lady Shiva, temporary as it may be, given Shiva's skillset. Copycat flipped, landing on his feet and narrowed his eyes, a wave of pinpricks rolling across his skin as he shifted himself, becoming the same species as Nemesis, a species from several galaxies away that had, at several points in time, gone to war with the Kryptonians to keep them from conquering their galaxy, and though they lost each time, they stopped the Kryptonian expansion. He couldn't remember the name of the species, but he didn't particularly care at the moment.

Nemesis roared, exploding forward, and Copycat met his charge. Their fist met hard enough to shatter the ground below them before Cassius flipped, slamming a kick down on Nemesis's back, sending him exploding down through the ground, Copycat flipping up onto a light pole. After a moment, however, the ground exploded into a massive swarm of ice spikes just as Nemesis reappeared, swiping his arms downward and across his body. Copycat crossed his arms in front of himself, then swiped them outward and the spikes all obeyed his commands, stabbing into the ground off to the sides instead of him. As soon as he did, however, Nemesis's fist crashed into his face, sending him streaking into the air. Nemesis leapt after him, but when he reached him, Copycat flipped under his first punch, slamming a kick into the side of his head. Nemesis fell, too stunned to react for a moment before flipping and drawing a long knife, driving the blade hilt-deep into a building and skidding to a stop. As he did, Copycat focused a wave of pinpricks running from the outside of his back to his shoulder blades, where a pair of leathery, bat-like wings formed, allowing him to fly down to the ground and land lightly, retracting the wings. Then, Nemesis landed in front of him. Copycat deflected his first punch, drilling one into his gut, then another into the side of his helmet. Nemesis spun left with the punch and his left leg flew up into a windmill kick, slamming into Copycat's jaw, sending him exploding into the side of a building off to the side.

Copycat huffed, pinpricks again travelling across his back, this time to his tailbone, where they grew into a long, flat tail with sharpened edges and that extended four feet into a deadly point. As soon as it was finished, he exploded forward again, streaking across the ground before throwing a punch. Nemesis leaned out of the way, then ducked under the tail as Copycat spun. He stepped forward, slamming a half-dozen blurred punches into Copycat's torso, sending him staggering backward, then jumped spinning, and slammed a kick into Copycat's jaw, only for Copycat's tail to impale him through the chest. Copycat flicked his tail, the tail tearing free of Nemesis's shoulder as he bounced away. Cassius pushed himself up, only for Nemesis to flash back to him before he could react, beginning to drill punch after punch into Copycat's face, ducking and stepping around any counters Copycat threw. The flesh on the sides of his wound began to move, stretching across the wound and connecting to the other side, pulling his torso closed and stitching him back together before the wound sealed altogether. Then, finally, Nemesis drew his knife again, splitting Copycat across the torso, sending him staggering away. Copycat's wound sealed just as quickly as Nemesis's and Copycat wiped blood from his face, panting for breath for a moment, before pinpricks washed over him as he added to his form, forming scales from a species of dragon-like aliens, the scales being among the hardest substances in the universe, natural or otherwise.

"Nice touch," Nemesis smirked, tossing his knife aside. "Let's put them to the test, shall we?"

Both exploded forward, their fists beginning to explode into each other in blurs, neither blocking the others. Blood flew and bones shattered every time Copycat landed a blow, only to almost instantly repair itself, though he wasn't able to affect Nemesis's helmet. On the other hand, as Nemesis shattered his hands against Copycat's scales again and again, slowly but surely, the scales began to crack. Finally, Nemesis ducked and spun under a punch and slammed a windmill kick into the side of Copycat's head, shattering the scales on his head and upper chest. And then, Nemesis had him planted in the ground as he rained punches into him. Finally, Cassius roared in effort, his right arm exploding into Nemesis's throat, blood spraying out of the bottom of Nemesis's mask as he flipped and spun into the air, his throat already repairing itself. Then, just as Nemesis landed, Doctor arrived, blasting Nemesis with his ankh-shaped magic blast. Nemesis skidded backward before flipping backward, out of the way of Copycat's fists, then grinned.

"Oh, you and I are going to have a _lot_ of fun," Nemesis grinned, kneeling and raising his hands to his sides, the ground behind him exploding, the debris becoming a massive cloud of stone spears. "Shall we begin?"

* * *

"Cassius!" Nightwing shouted, slapping him, hard.

Cassius gasped harshly, eyes flying wide open and arms and legs scrambling as he looked around wildly, brain slowly beginning to register that he wasn't in the middle of a losing battle against Nemesis. He stilled, trying to slow his panicked breathing, ignoring the worried look Nightwing, Megan, and Connor were all giving him. Finally, he let out a slow breath, laying back down and holding a hand to his head.

"I lost the sparring match, didn't I?" Cassius asked.

"Lost the match!?" Nightwing scoffed. "I turned to throw a punch and you just dropped and started seizing, then practically went into cardiac arrest. Then, before we could try to bring you back, you just started freaking out. You were thrashing and shouting in a language we couldn't understand, you were completely blocking out Megan's attempts to link with you, and you damn-near threw Connor across the room with a backhanded slap without using your goo."

"I did?" Cassius asked, frowning, looking at his hand. "How far'd he go?"

"Out of the sparring ring," Connor said. "So...fifteen feet or so."

Cassius frowned and looked over to Nightwing. "Got a spare birderang that won't explode?"

Nightwing handed him one, and Cassius gripped it with both hands, grunting in effort before bending it almost into a loop, the other three staring at him in shock.

"Well, fancy that," Cassius said. "It's about time I picked up some new tricks."

"How?" Nightwing asked.

"I think maybe I might still have at least part of my old powers," Cassius said. "And I finally remembered something new."

"What?" Megan asked.

"A surprise attack by Nemesis," Cassius said. "As well as why he's so fucking powerful. I need water."

Nightwing nodded and helped Cassius to his feet before they headed to the kitchen, Cassius getting himself a glass and draining it before sighing and leaning back against the counter as he got a second, sipping at it. He still felt like he had just been fighting Nemesis, but his nerves were starting to settle, and he would be fine once he'd rested a bit.

"So, the biggest thing about Nemesis is his species," Cassius said. "I can't remember what it's called. I knew it before, but I don't remember it. He's from several galaxies away, a galaxy the Kryptonians wanted, for whatever reason. Apparently his species fought several wars against the Kryptonians to stop them from taking over that galaxy. They technically won the wars and stopped the Kryptonians from taking the galaxy, but they also were almost completely decimated each time, so they considered it a loss. Not sure how I know."

"Are you a member of that species?" Nightwing asked.

"No," Cassius said. "Copycat was the child of a human and a type of formless alien who wanted to see what their child would be if they shapeshifted into a human and had a kid. Anyway, Nemesis's species has strength comparable to Superman's, speed close to Wally's top speed but able to activate it on a dime like Flash, he healed nearly instantaneously, even when I split his torso almost in half, and can control ay non-living material around them, such as stone or ice. At Ice Fortress five, he turned some of the ice particles the fortress was spewing into spikes, and in the fight I just remembered, he was turning the ground into spikes, then actual spears just before you woke me up. He can form and control them telekinetically."

"Lovely," Nightwing said. "What else?"

"He's stronger and faster than any other member of his race," Cassius said. "During the fight I remembered, I turned myself into the same race and he was winning. I added the scales of a species of alien dragon that are nearly indestructible and he shattered them. He repeatedly broke his hands to do it, and it took him nearly two hundred punches, but his hands also healed between punches, which were going at about the same speed as an M16's bullets. Oh, and he never had a kryptonite that I could find."

"So, basically, he's virtually unkillable, impossible to restrain, and only Superman could fight him on level ground without being obliterated," Nightwing summarized.

"As far as we know," Cassius said. "I _do_ remember something about his helmet. It was...important."

"What, like, Doctor Fate, source of his power, important, or like, it hurt like a bitch to punch, important?" Connor asked.

"Definitely the second one," Cassius said. "But there was more than that. I don't think it was the source of his powers, though."

"Well, we'll have to rip it off of him next time we fight him and find out," Nightwing said.

Cassius nodded, finishing his water. "I'm going to go to bed. I'm exhausted."

"Alright," Nightwing said. "I'll wake you up if anything come up."

Cassius nodded, walking away from them and to his room. He sat down heavily and sighed, holding a hand to his head. He'd remembered more than the fight. The rest just wasn't as important. For example, he finally understood why Lady Shiva had been so set on sleeping with him so long ago. In his past life, she'd hounded him almost as doggedly as Nemesis. The difference was, every time he fought her, she spent as much time trying to seduce him as trying to kill him, probably more considering that there had been times that she had found him _specifically_ to try and seduce him. It had been why she'd spared him after she and Cain finally beat him. She'd had her way with him before taking him to the island. He had also remembered that before he and his wife had started dating, she'd been dating a friend of both of theirs, which was how they met. He remembered how jealous he'd been, and how it felt.

He pushed those thoughts away. That didn't matter. It had nothing to do with anything. he closed his eyes, struggling to will himself to sleep.

* * *

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	49. Chapter 49

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Malina

"Remember, this is primarily a recon mission," Batman said as Nightwing flew the Bio-Ship, the cockpit currently occupied exclusively by Batman Inc., toward Malina Island, the Kroloteans' main headquarters. "We want to find out as much as we can about the Kroloteans' invasion strategy _before_ we shut them down and deliver them to the Green Lantern Corps."

According to information Megan had ripped from the mind of a Krolotean Tim and his squad had captured during the raids, the Kroloteans had a base inside of Malina Island's volcano, and had all had standing orders to evacuate to the island if they were discovered anywhere. Even on Rann. Of course, in retrieving the information, she'd also left the Krolotean comatose, as she had the general on Rann.

Cassius glanced at the door leading to the back half of the Bio-Ship. Standing in back should be Aquaman and La'gaan as Beta squad.

"Approaching Drop Zone Beta," Nightwing announced.

La'gaan and Aquaman deployed into the water instantly, and Nightwing flew up higher into the air, up over the island.

"Drop Zone Gamma," Nightwing reported.

He flew the ship into the air and opened the bottom, all of them deploying and taking out a group of four guards, all four of them Black Manta's troops.

"Move in," Batman said.

"Wait," Cassius said, pulling their helmets off one at a time before he found a communicator and took it out, sticking it into the side of his head where he could use it. "Okay, now go."

He used his goo to force the door they were guarding open quietly and they all slipped through, then into a vent, except for Batman, who was just gone.

"All sectors, report," a familiar voice said.

"Sector one, secure," a voice said.

"Sector two, secure," another said.

Cassius waited, and no one spoke, so he took a chance. He altered his vocal cords to change his voice and raised a hand to his communicator. "Sector three, secure."

"Sector four, secure," another said.

Nightwing looked back to Cassius, who nodded. Nightwing returned it and they dropped silently onto a catwalk overlooking a massive, open chamber where a ship was being built. To Cassius, it looked kind of like a gigantic green version of the bomb dropped on Nagasaki at the end of World War II. However, as Batman Inc. scattered, Cassius looked toward Black Manta's sub, which was floating in the water off to one side, seeing Black Manta standing on a walkway leading to it. Apparently, Cassius hadn't responded fast enough.

He began to move more carefully, sticking to the shadows. However, just as he did, that same voice, one which he recognized instantly, spoke through the communicators again.

"Intruders," the voice said. "Upper level, and in the water."

Cassius tapped his own communicator twice, signaling that they'd been spotted, and a second later, Black Manta, or at least, the person wearing armor identical to Black Manta's spun, his helmet's eyes firing a pair of red laser beams into the water. A moment later, a pair of Black Manta's troops opened fire at Tim, only for Cassandra to suddenly be behind them, dropping both before Cassius blinked and she was gone again. Three more sprinted out of a door nearby and Batman dropped on one before Nightwing flipped over the railing and slammed a kick into another, then Batgirl leapt out of the door the last had just come from, dropping him as well. Tim used his collapsible bo staff to pole vault up to a catwalk above them, kicking one into the wall before his pole was suddenly electrified and he slammed it into the other troop, dropping him. Troops began to fire into the water, only for Aquaman and La'gaan to burst out of it, dropping both. Several troops stepped out of a door in front of Cassius and he dropped two instantly before Rose dropped from above the third, slamming her blunted swords into his shoulders and dropping him. Both took off again, Cassius dropping another troop as he passed before disappearing into the shadows again. He looked over at the others, seeing them all doing well. Just as he looked, a soldier stepped out behind Tim, only for Cassandra to drop into the shot's path, getting hit in the right side before using her blunt wakizashi to drop the soldier.

Cassius turned back to the front in time to lean out of the way, then shot forward, drilling a punch into the soldier's gut, his new strength, which he was still getting used to, sending him flying backward into two more, knocking both off of the edge of the catwalk to another, where they were knocked out on the landing. Cassius looked down at Manta as he blasted Aquaman. He sighed, then leapt off the catwalk he was on, falling toward him and forming goo over his arms and legs before punching down at him, missing by an inch and cratering the ground.

"Manta to Partner, the base has been infiltrated, abort operation!" Manta whispered urgently.

"Partner to Manta," a heavily distorted voice responded. "The device is already primed, you have five minutes. Get your men out. The bomb will take care of the rest."

"Perfect," manta said.

"I heard that," Cassius said, finally tossing the stolen communicator away and raising a hand to his own. "Bomb. Five minutes. Leave Black Manta to me."

"Copy," Batman said. "Make sure you get out on time."

"Oh, trust me, I will," Cassius said, looking around.

The same kind of tanks as the Kroloteans had used on Rann, apparently called Mechs, were trying to fight La'gaan and Batman Inc. with limited success. The remaining troopers were also trying but were being beaten quickly.

"Manta to all troopers," Manta said. "Endgame enabled. Strategic retreat to Manta Flier. You have four minutes."

"You're going nowhere," Cassius said. "You have a _lot_ of explaining to do, Kaldur'ahm."

Kaldur's helmet fired its lasers at him and he spun around them, launching himself forward, and drilled a punch into his helmet, sending him bouncing away. Kaldur flipped, landing on his feet and skidded to a stop, the left lense of his helmet's eyes cracked. Then, he charged. Cassius moved to meet his charge, and when Kaldur threw a punch, Cassius spun around it, only for Kaldur to instantly meet him with a windmill kick to the head. Cassius staggered away, grinning.

"You've improved," Cassius said.

"You are not the only one trained by Shadows, now," Kaldur said.

"Oh, trust me, you weren't trained by Shadows until you were trained by Deathstroke, Lady Shiva, and David Cain all at once," Cassius said, readying himself and growing two extra sets of arms from his goo. "Allow me to show you the difference."

"Nightwing to Delta Squad, enemy is attempting escape," Nightwing reported. "Requesting backup."

Then, Superman exploded through the wall with his Heat Vision, blasting a Mech before dropping Connor, Wonder Woman, and Wonder Girl both following. Cassius smirked at Kaldur. Then, both charged. This time, Cassius didn't hold back as much. Kaldur managed to block three punches before Cassius slammed his other three arms into him from three different angles, sending him staggering backward. He drilled three left hooks into him, one to the helmet and two to the torso, then dropped, spinning and sweeping his legs out from under him before finishing his spin and slamming three right crosses into his chest, sending him bouncing away. Kaldur flipped, firing his laser but only the right laser fired properly, the left simply exploded and shattered the helmet around it. Cassius ducked out of the way of the laser that actually fired, then swiped his arms, several basketball-sized goo projectiles streaking across the gap and exploding into Kaldur's chest and abdomen, launching him backward before stretching back to Cassius and being reabsorbed.

"Three minutes to departure," Kaldur said as he was standing, just in time for Aquaman's fist to explode into the right side of his helmet, sending him crashing to the ground, his helmet bouncing away.

Cassius stepped up beside Aquaman at the same time as La'gaan did, La'gaan currently using his Atlantean Sorcery to massively enhance his upper body's muscles, giving him a freakishly ballooned appearance.

"Allow me to handle this, your majesty," Cassius said, walking forward.

Kaldur stood, turning toward them all, glaring at Aquaman.

"I had not believed Nightwing until this moment," Aquaman said.

"You did not _want_ to believe it!" Kaldur seethed.

"None of us wanted to believe this!" Connor said, walking over. "How could you betray us!?"

"You dare question me!?" Kaldur seethed, ripping his new, black Water Bearers from the back of his waist, forming a pair of blades. "After all of you let Tula die!?"

Cassius retracted his extra arms, forming a pair of wakizashi instead. "We didn't let _anyone_ die!"

"Kaldur, that was a mission!" Nightwing said, landing beside Cassius. "Aquagirl knew the risks! No one wanted her-"

"Neptune's beard!" La'gaan shouted, storming forward. "Don't coddle this traitor! He has joined forces with our king's greatest enemy!"

"Do you mean the king who hid from me the true identity of my father?" Kaldur growled.

"That was _my_ error in judgement Kaldur'ahm," Aquaman said. "No one else need suffer for it."

"All will suffer if Black Manta demands it," Kaldur snarled. "Blood is thicker than sea water."

A small box rose from his shoulder, firing a rocket at Cassius, only for Cassandra's grappling gun to impale him and yank him backward just as Superman intercepted the rocket, the explosion wrapping around him but not reaching Cassius, who pulled the grappling hook out of his abdomen and gave Cassandra an unimpressed look.

"There were less painful ways of doing that," Cassius said.

"You're welcome," Cassandra signed.

Cassius rolled his eyes and looked around, seeing Nightwing and Connor were both gone. "Superman, time to go. We have two minutes before the bomb goes."

"Right," Superman nodded. "Everyone, pull out!"

"What about Nightwing and Superboy?" Rose asked.

"I'll go after them," Cassius said, retracting his wakizashi and walking to a tube off to the side that led down under the facility. "See you all outside."

They all scattered and Cassius dropped, sliding down the tube, arriving just as Kaldur electrocuted Connor to knock him out.

"You have two minutes," Kaldur said, then turned, diving into the water. Cassius walked over to the bomb, which was flat and roughly rectangular with two thin yellow triangles reaching inward from the sides like spikes, and a gold diamond-shaped spot in the middle with a red light in the center, like a vertical eye, the red light blinking.

"He's getting away!" Wonder Girl shouted suddenly.

"We'll stop him!" La'gaan said.

"Negative!" Nightwing said.

"For the last fucking time, get off of this god damned island!" Cassius said. "The bomb is alien tech! We cannot disarm it! It is going to explode!"

"I'll get it out," Connor said.

"No!" Nightwing said. "It might have pressure or motion sensors. All squads, evacuate to Bio-Ship!"

"We're out," Batman said. "You three and Superman are the only ones left."

"You heard the man," Nightwing said. "Let's move!"

They all sprinted to one of the tunnels, Cassius using his goo to rapidly ascend it, carrying them behind him. Then, they all sprinted out of the facility and onto the Bio-Ship, which took off instantly. A few moments later, just as they hit what they assumed was the minimum safe distance, the island suddenly erupted into a fireball that dwarfed what the island had been. The explosion was blinding, and within seconds, it caught the Bio-Ship, sending it careening forward and tilting it almost vertical. Then, finally, Megan regained control and they left the explosion, which finally faded and left behind a pillar of glowing red and black smoke that stretched miles across and reached past the clouds. Once the blast had cleared, they turned and flew back for Superman, who had stayed to try and convince the Kroloteans to let him save them.

"What just happened?" Wonder Girl asked.

"The Kroloteans were trying to build a new ship," Megan said.

"They had to, Angel Fish," La'gaan said. "It was the only way they could leave Earth without their Zeta platforms or their original ship."

"But was Aqualad helping them, or luring them into a trap?" Wonder Girl asked.

"The bomb was of alien origin, but the Kroloteans clearly knew nothing about it," Nightwing said. "So where did it come from?"

"I have a feeling it may be up to you and your team to find out," Batman said.

"Black Manta is a part of the Light," Cassius said. "I have a feeling they were using the Kroloteans, and either decided to cut their losses, or didn't need them anymore, so they removed them. The bomb may have come from another alien group the Light is working with."

"That's a good theory," Batman said. "But we can't prove anything, yet."

Cassius nodded and looked to Cassandra, eyes dropping to the burn in her side.

"Are you okay?" Tim was asking her. "That looks like it hurts."

"It's fine," Cassandra signed.

"I can patch you up after we get back," Cassius said, Cassandra smiling brightly and nodding.

"Whoa, hold on!" Wonder Girl said. "What do you mean _you'll_ patch her up?"

"What?" Cassius asked. "I always help her with her injuries. Always have."

Cassandra nodded in agreement.

"What?" Wonder Girl asked. "I've never seen you tending to her injuries!"

"That's because we do it in one of our rooms where she has privacy," Cassius said.

Everyone who wasn't in Batman Inc. or an original Team member stared at him like he'd spoken gibberish.

"What?" Cassius asked.

"You're just joking, right?" Wonder Girl asked.

"No, he's serious," Nightwing said. "He's been tending to her wounds since she was eight."

"That's sick!" La'gaan spat.

"How?" Cassius asked. "I'm cleaning and bandaging her wounds, not molesting her."

"Why do you have to do it at all?" Wonder Woman asked.

"I probably don't," Cassius shrugged. "I just sort of do. If she wants me to stop because she's uncomfortable with it, she's perfectly capable of saying so."

"Is she, though?" La'gaan asked.

"Okay, fine, she's perfectly capable of _signing_ it, happy, Fish-face?" Cassius asked.

"What'd you just say!?" La'gaan demanded.

"Relax, La'gaan," Rose said. "None of the three of us has any problem with it."

"Three!?" Wonder Girl gaped. "You too!?"

"Once in a while," Rose shrugged. "If it's my back and I can't reach it or I can't bandage it well enough. It's really not that big a deal. Like he said, he's not doing anything inappropriate. He's just bandaging our wounds."

"It's inappropriate for you two to be naked around him!" La'gaan said.

"If you think that's bad..." Tim muttered.

"What, there's more!?" La'gaan asked.

"Not really worse," Tim said. "Just in the same general category. Cassandra walks around naked all the time."

Everyone stared at him, then Cassandra, who shrugged.

"Is he serious?" La'gaan asked.

"Cassius usually manages to stop her at the Cave," Rose said. "At home, not so much."

"Who raised her?" La'gaan asked.

"Assassins," Cassius said. "Then me after se was nine."

"And you taught her that it was okay to walk around naked?" La'gaan asked.

"No," Cassius said. "I was too busy keeping the League of Shadows from finding her and Rose. Why are you even making a big deal about this?"

"Because it's wrong!" La'gaan snapped.

"That's enough!" Batman finally said. "Who Orphan wants to tend to her injuries or what she wants to wear at night is entirely her choice and does _not_ need to be a topic of discussion."

"We're here," Megan said suddenly.

She landed the Bio-Ship in the hangar and everybody piled out, the League members all heading for the Watch Tower.

"Alright," Cassius said. "Now, let's go see about that burn."

Cassandra nodded, smiling, and they walked out of the hangar with Rose as Tim walked over.

"You know, if you ever need someone else to help with an injury, I'd be happy to lend a hand," Tim offered.

Cassius raised an eyebrow at him and his face turned scarlet.

"I-I didn't mean it like that!" he said hurriedly. "I-I just meant...I-I'd be...willing to help!"

Cassandra smiled appreciatively but shook her head. "Cassius. Rose."

Tim nodded. "Uh, okay. Um...so, I was thinking. Uh...there's this new scary movie coming out in a couple days. Assuming we're not on a mission, would you want to go?"

Cassandra pursed her lips for a moment, remaining unresponsive for several seconds before nodding. "Yes."

Tim grinned, nodding. "Okay, cool!"

They reached the door to Cassius's room and Tim stopped, looking around before realizing where they were.

"Uh...I'm going to...uh...get a snack before bed," Tim said, walking away.

"The kitchen's the other way," Cassius smirked.

"Uh...right," Tim said. "Um...I must really be tired. "Think I'll skip the snack."

"Your bedroom's _also_ the other way," Rose chimed in, also smirking.

Tim's face flushed scarlet as he turned and walked back past them, muttering an embarrassed, "Right."

The three of them walked into Cassius's room and he closed and sealed the door as both girls began to take off their costumes.

"Rose, what are you..." he stopped as he saw a slit a burn on her upper back. "Oh. You got sloppy, huh?"

"A little," Rose said, tossing her costume's armor suit and under shirt aside, walking over and sitting on the bed, facing away from him, beside where Cassandra was seated facing him, though Cassandra had taken everything off since her burn extended down below her waist.

Cassius sighed, grabbing the bandages, some burn gel, and gauze wrap. He started with Rose's, since it would be faster, and after a few minutes, he was finished, Rose pulling her shirt back on. Then, Cassius turned to Cassandra, inspecting the burn. It was clean, except for one bit of fabric from her shirt, which was caught against it. The burn itself stretched from just below her breasts to cover most of the left side of her abdomen, stopping just above the middle of her waist, then reaching down in a rounded line to the front of her left hip. It reached around to just barely reach onto her back about level with the front. Cassius let out a slow breath, glancing at her as she watched him.

"This is going to hurt quite a lot," Cassius said.

She nodded and he began to spread burn gel over it as gently as he could. She didn't react any, as usual, and simply sat there calmly. He worked from front to back as he worked his way down the burn, and as he neared her waist, she lay back so that her leg wasn't folding part of the burn on itself from her position, allowing him to finish the burn unhindered. Once he was done, he held his hands out, Cassandra setting her hands in his and allowing him to pull her to her feet before he used several goo strands to hold bandage pads to her burn, covering it all at once before his arms began to wrap her left upper leg and her torso in gauze to hold the bandages on. Finally, he finished and Cassandra hugged him, Cassius sighing and hugging her back.

"You did good saving him," Cassius said.

She smiled, squeezing him for a moment before stepping back and beginning to get dressed again.

"How long until we're healed?" Rose asked before swallowing a single pill of one painkiller or another.

"You shouldn't self-medicate," Cassius said.

"Oh, like it's the first time I've done that," Rose said, rolling her eyes. "So?"

"A couple days," Cassius said.

Both girls frowned in confusion, Cassandra pointing at her burn.

"You two never noticed, did you?" Cassius asked, grinning. "I had Zatanna apply the same healing spell as she used on Cassandra when she was hurt defending the bank robber to your necklaces. Rose, you may have noticed you healed from your own gunshot wounds faster than normal?"

Rose thought for a moment before nodding. "So, what, we constantly heal faster?"

"Yes," Cassius nodded. "Both of your burns should be gone within four days at most."

They nodded.

"Bed time?" Rose asked.

Cassius sighed, rolling his eyes. "I have to go to the bathroom. Whoever's sleeping in here, go change into pajamas and do whatever you need to. Cassandra, no walking around naked, you little troublemaker."

Cassandra stuck her tongue out at him before leaving with Rose. Cassius headed to his room's bathroom and relieved himself, then headed back into the room. Just as he sat on the bed and shifted his clothes into a loose pair of dark grey pants and a loose dark grey button-up shirt, the door opened and both girls walked in, both instantly climbing in bed with him. He sighed, wrapping and arm around them both.

"Why do I let you sleep with me, Rose?" Cassius asked again.

"Because you know you can't say know when I beg," Rose smirked.

"Oh yeah," Cassius said. "Manipulative little brat."

"Little?" Rose scoffed. "I'm not exactly nine years old anymore."

"Rose, you're fourteen," Cassius said. "You're still a kid."

She rolled her eyes. "Okay, yes, I am. But that doesn't make me little."

Cassius sighed. "Keep telling yourself that Rose. Good night girls."

"Good night," Rose smiled, cuddling into his side.

"Yes," Cassandra said, also cuddling into his side.

* * *

Cassius raised a hand, smiling convincingly for Cassandra, who was waving goodbye before she and Tim headed to Star City to go watch the movie Tim had chosen. Once they'd teleported away, Cassius's smile fell along with his hand and he took a long, slow breath, holding it for a moment before exhaling just as slowly. He turned, looking around, and finally stopped, seeing Connor leaning against the wall, arms crossed, a slight smirk on his face, and one eyebrow raised, Rose standing beside him, grinning.

"Yup," Connor said. "I'm wiping those smiles off both of your faces."

Both of their smirks grew and the three of them headed outside, a few of the others coming out to watch, Nightwing, Wonder Girl, and Beast Boy taking bets on the winner. La'gaan was simply of the mind that Cassius needed to lose, still being mad for unknowable reasons that Cassius tended to Cassandra's wounds, even though the argument was about three days ago. No one understood what he was so upset about, either.

"You sure you want to fight us both?" Connor asked, smirking as he and Rose readied themselves.

"Well, it wouldn't be worthwhile training if I didn't put someone decent at fighting on your side, Connor," Cassius smirked.

"Oh, we'll see about that," Connor smirked.

All three took off instantly, Cassius putting his brutal training to work fully, feeling the knots in his stomach slowly unwind as they fought, and his chest feeling less and less tight.

* * *

Cassius stirred as Cassandra sat on the side of his bed. It was a little after midnight, and as soon as he was awake, he knew something was wrong. He sat up, turning to her and pulled her into a hug.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Nice," Cassandra said, then shook her head, pulling back so she could use sign language. "It was nice. The movie was good, the dinner we went to was good, and it was really fun."

"Then what's wrong?" he asked.

"Tim tried to kiss me when we got back," Cassandra signed. "I didn't let him, and he seemed okay with it. You don't have to yell at him or anything. I just...i didn't mean to make him think I like him like that."

"I know you didn't," Cassius said, pulling her into another hug. "It'll be alright. He won't hold it against you. He'll understand. Did he apologize?"

Cassandra nodded against him.

"Alright," Cassius said. "Everything will be fine. You'll see."

Cassandra nodded. "Can I stay here tonight?"

"Of course," Cassius said, giving her a light squeeze. "Whenever you need to."

She nodded and he lifted the sheets for her. Before she got in, she dropped her pants and shirt on the floor, leaving herself in her underwear and bra, plus the few bandages that remained over the last of her burn, and climbed in beside him. The burn hadn't scarred, fortunately. Neither had Rose's. Cassius was glad. They both had enough scars. Enough proof that he couldn't protect them well enough. He forced those thoughts away before his mood could slip and Cassandra squeezed him lightly. He smiled, closing his eyes and holding her a little tighter, drifting off quickly.

* * *

Cassius walked out onto the beach with the rest of the group. It had been twenty days since Malina Island, and things had been quiet. So, the League had decided to send the six Leaguers who had been sent to Rimbor by Vandal Savage to be tried by an alien court for their actions. Aside from those six, the rest of the group consisted of Hawkman, Icon, Captain Atom, and any protégés they had. Icon would be going with the other six to represent the League during the trial, and Hawkman would be going to be with his wife.

"Dick, you are in charge of the others while I'm gone," Batman said. "Cassius will be your second-in-command, followed by Barbara."

"Understood," Nightwing nodded, then hesitated. "Be careful, alright?"

"I was about to say the same to you," Batman said. "I fear we leave the more dangerous task here on Earth."

"We'll manage," Nightwing smiled.

"Time to go," John Stewart called out.

"Good luck," Cassius said, Batman nodding.

The Leaguers who were going all gathered together and Stewart raised his hand, his ring shining before a shining green bubble began to form around them.

"May the gods be with you all," Wonder Woman said.

Then, the bubble transformed into a jet-like space ship and it took off. Then, the others began to disperse and head inside.

* * *

Leave a review.


	50. Chapter 50

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

New Face

"Are you ready to go to dinner?" Tim asked.

"Sorry," Cassandra said, then signed, "Something came up. I'm going on a personal run with Cassius."

"Personal?" Tim asked. "Can I ask what it is?"

"It's..." she paused, trying to think for a moment before continuing to sign. "A ghost from his past."

"Void past, or _past_ past?" Tim asked.

"It's personal," Rose said, walking over and passing Cassandra her two swords. "That means you don't need to know." She turned to Cassandra. "You ready?"

Cassandra nodded and waved to Tim as they walked outside, finding Cassius waiting. Cassius nodded and wrapped an arm around them, forming a pair of wings and taking off. As they flew, Cassandra tightened her arms around him and he smiled, holding her tighter as well, wrapping goo around them both to keep them warm.

"You're sure you don't mind skipping out on Tim for this?" Cassius asked.

Cassandra nodded and Cassius sighed.

"Alright," Cassius said. "I'll give you both some goo to keep you warm when we get there."

"That'd be nice," Rose smiled. "It'd be a shame if we froze to death."

He rolled his eyes and they fell silent as he flew before he finally reached his destination, landing in the snow around a frozen pond. It was in the middle of the woods, in the middle of nowhere, somewhere in the northern half of Maine. He walked out onto the ice, jumping a few times to test its integrity. It snapped and popped, but it held, so he nodded to himself, turning to the girls, both now wearing insulated jackets and pants made from his goo, as well as ice skates.

"I can't believe you've never had me take you two ice skating before," Cassius said, forming himself a pair of skates and pushing off, drifting around the frozen pond for a few moments for them to see what they were supposed to look like, then drifted over to them and stopped, holding out his hands.

Each girl took one and he pushed off backward, easily keeping himself going and grinning from ear to ear as both girls slipped and slid, barely staying on their skates. Cassandra he'd expected to struggle, but Cassandra was just icing on the cake. Finally, they began to get the hang of it and he suddenly released them, spinning around them and pushing from behind. Cassandra shrieked instantly as her feet went out from under her, her goo clothing cushioning her landing. Cassandra, on the other hand, allowed herself to be pushed and skated along for about three seconds before leaning left to try and turn, her skates skipping out to her right, sending her crashing to the ice, which she slid across quickly for several seconds before stopping at the edge of the pond, giving him an unimpressed look while he laughed, bent forward at the waist.

"I'm sorry," he finally said. "It's just rare to see you struggle at something."

He straightened up just in time for a snowball to hit him in the face. He brushed the snow off just as Rose reached him, barely, and dumped snow down the back of his shirt. "Oh, that's it!"

He took off instantly, skating around quickly and spun in a full circle around Rose, spinning her as he did, then left, allowing her to fall. Then, he jumped over a snowball from Cassandra and landed lightly, scooping up enough snow for two projectiles as he passed a snow drift, forming both instantly. Then, he hurled them just as Cassandra was finishing her next. Both found their mark, hitting the girls in the face, and both shrieked in outrage.

"Oh, you're dead!" Rose said, grinning widely.

Cassius raised his hands, beckoning them mockingly and both girls began to try to charge. Then slipped. They stood up. Rose's feet shot forward and she landed on her back. Cassandra managed to get going, but when he spun around her attempts to catch him, she tried to turn and slipped, sliding to the edge of the pond again. Cassius grinned and formed a goo clone, who moved to help Rose up, Cassius going to help Cassandra. Together, the two helped the girls up and got them going, the clone moving slower with Rose than Cassius was with Cassandra. As they skated, Cassius kept an arm around Cassandra's waist, holding her against his side, holding that arm in front of him by the hand. In doing so, he controlled her posture and how much she leaned. Together, they drifted around a lazy turn before beginning to cross the lake. Slowly, she began to get the hang of it, now that he wasn't messing with her. He showed her how to push off with one foot without letting the other slide out from under her, allowing her to glide across the ice smoothly, and he showed her how to control how sharp or wide her turn was with her foot placement and angle as much as leaning. He taught her how to go fast, slow down, and how to stop short by turning sideways. Finally, she was able to skate alone and Cassius rejoined with his clone, continuing to help Rose, soon getting her to be able to skate at least moderately well on her own as well.

Once she could, Cassandra skated past Cassius, catching him by the arm and stealing him from Rose, who nearly fell from suddenly losing her support. Cassius smiled, skating ahead of Cassandra and turned around backward, holding her hands in his and picking up speed quickly, forming a pair of eyes in the back of his neck so he could see while he guided Cassandra, Rose trying to catch up. Cassandra smiled and began to play keep away, trying to keep Rose from stealing him back. Finally, Rose caught his arm and he instantly released Cassandra's hands, spinning and getting beside Rose on her left, holding her the same way he had been holding Cassandra when he had taught her, the two gliding across the ice quickly. Then, as they were turning, a snowball hit Rose in the face and Cassandra stole Cassius. He laughed, only to pull Cassandra in a circle, wrapping his arm around Rose as they were passing her and bringing her with them as they began to skate more calmly together.

"Thank you," Cassandra said, smiling, both arms wrapped around Cassius, Rose holding him similarly from the other side, Cassius having an arm around both of them.

"Yeah," Rose smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Cassius said. "If there's ever something you want to try that you haven't yet, feel free to ask."

"Well, I've never seen a shooting star," Rose said.

Cassius laughed, growing a third arm, complete with his armor's wrist computer, and pulled up a screen, searching a quick question on google before his eyes widened. "Well, whataya know. You, Rose, are about to be very happy."

He guided them to a stop and formed a thick blanket from goo, the three of them laying down on it before he formed a second over it, both girls cuddling into his sides.

"What are we doing now?" Rose asked. "Don't tell me Google told you there was going to be a shooting star, tonight."

"Not just one," Cassius grinned. "What time is it?"

"Eleven thirty eight," Rose said.

"Perfect," Cassius said. "Watch."

Rose sighed impatiently but directed her gaze skyward, as Cassandra had her own. Then, finally, just as Rose's watch beeped out midnight, a streak of light passed over them. Rose gasped harshly as soon as she saw it, only to squeal in surprise as more and more began to follow it.

"There's so many!" Rose breathed.

"What?" Cassandra asked, frowning.

"It's called a meteor shower," Cassius said. "Each one is a meteor, what people call a shooting star. A meteor, is a chunk of rock or ice travelling through space. When it passes through the air around the Earth, it burns, making it look like that. A meteor shower is a lot of them."

Cassandra nodded for a moment before looking up at him. "What?"

He chuckled, shaking his head and grew a third arm to sign, "They're big burning rocks flying through space. You make a wish when you see one, and it's supposed to come true if you don't tell anyone what it is."

Her eyes widened and she looked up at the sky again. He smiled at both of them, the meteor shower reflected perfectly in their wide eyes, then directed his gaze to the sky again, his smile slowly shrinking down to a more subdued one as he noticed that he felt weird. Not in a bad way, but different than usual. He had a sort of weightless feeling, and breathing suddenly felt noticeably easier than normal. He ignored it, watching the meteor shower for another ten minutes before it ended. He stood, retracting the goo blankets and forming wings before lifting into the air, forming the girls' goo clothes and all three's skates into goo cocoons.

"That's a really nice Valentines Day tradition," Rose smiled as they flew, Cassandra nodding in agreement.

"I'm glad you two had fun," Cassius smiled. "Thank you for coming with me. I'm not sure I'd have been able to alone, the way my older memories have been lately."

"Have they been giving you trouble?" Rose asked, both girls looking up at him worriedly.

"Not really," Cassius said. "They've just been more...prevalent than usual."

Both nodded. They all fell silent and after a while, they reached the cave and all headed to Cassius's room, Cassius simply rolling his eyes and climbing into bed, both girls simply stripping down to their underwear and bras for the night, rather than going to get pajamas. It was fair, considering it was almost three in the morning anyway. he sighed, wrapping his arm around them as both curling into his sides, all three quickly drifting off to sleep.

* * *

Cassius hummed thoughtfully as he read through the information with Nightwing.

"They were snatching humans to use as guinea pigs," Nightwing said. "They were hoping to find something. Something inside us."

"What?" Tim asked.

"It doesn't translate," Cassius said. "The nearest word for it is...what, Meta-Gene?"

Nightwing nodded.

"What's a Meta-Gene?" Tim asked.

"Never met a Jean I didn't like," Beast Boy grinned, nudging Tim with his elbow.

"It's a genetic marker that allows humans to develop superpowers," Cassius said. "For most people, it never activates."

"How do you know that?" Nightwing asked.

"I...can't remember," Cassius frowned. "Maybe I knew it before?"

"Warning," the computer said suddenly, an alarm beginning to go off. "Unknown energy impulse detected."

"Oh lovely," Cassius said. "Is it the mysterious partner Megan and the other girls found out Queen Bee was planning to send the abductees to before Alpha rescued them?"

"Maybe," Nightwing said.

Just then, a sphere of light and electricity appeared behind Cassius and Nightwing, both spinning and Cassius forming goo over his arms and legs, the rest of his armor forming as well. Suddenly, the sphere faded, leaving a huge, dark grey machine, which steamed and crashed heavily to the ground. A bar handle in the door facing them slid up, unlocking, and all four tensed, Tim whipping out his bo staff and Nightwing his eskrima sticks.

"Stand ready!" Nightwing said.

Finally, the door split in half at the middle, the top opening outward and up and the bottom opposite it, a massive cloud of steam billowing out as it opened.

"If it's a doomsday monster, I blame you, Dick," Cassius said.

A pair of red-gloved hands gripped the sides of the door and they all tensed, only for a human boy in a red and white bodysuit to flip out of it and land on his feet, standing with his arms over his head.

"Tada!" the boy said.

Cassius raised an eyebrow at the gold ear-covers attached to the back of his yellow-tinted goggles, both ear covers having a small gold lightning bolt.

"Intruder Alert," the computer began to announce, less than a second before Cassandra stepped out from behind the odd machine and swept the boy's legs out from under him, grabbing his arm and wrenching it back behind him before slamming him to the ground.

"Ow!" he shouted. "Hey, that hurts!"

"Computer, lock down Cave," Nightwing said.

"Don't try to move," Cassius warned. "She doesn't like killing, but she'll snap your arm like a twig no problem."

"Well, I think we found our unknown energy impulse," Beast Boy said.

"Impulse?" the boy asked. "That's so crash! Catchy, dramatic, one word." Suddenly he was behind Nightwing, everyone looking around in confusion, Cassandra staring at the suddenly empty spot on the ground in shock for a moment. "Like Nightwing," then he was behind Tim, "and Robin," then Beast Boy, "and Beast Boy, except, that's two words. Blue Beetle's two words. Hey is he here too?" He stopped as Cassius's goo hand caught him by the throat, its claws pressing against the side of his neck. The boy gasped loudly, eyes wide. "Holy cow! You're him!"

"You recognize me?" Cassius asked.

"Heck yeah!" the boy said. "You're Void! You're my hero!"

He suddenly began to vibrate, slipping through Cassius's goo easily, only for a goo arm to grow out of the extended arm, slamming a punch into his chest just as he stopped vibrating, hurling him backward into the wall. When the boy raised his head, Cassius had a couple dozen spiked tendrils positioned around him, ready to strike.

"I'm going to ask you one time," Cassius said. "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm Impulse!" the boy grinned. "Nice punch! Exactly what I'd expect from a former master assassin turned the greatest hero of all time!"

One of Cassius's tendrils lashed out, whipping the boy across the chest, making him yelp in pain and leaving a welt, though he suspected it'd heal quickly.

"Try again," Cassius said, glaring at him. "I'm not playing games with you, brat. Who are you? Where did you get your speed? And how did you get here? Be a smartass or dodge a question again, and I whip you again. And believe me, you can't vibrate your molecules through all of them. I've sparred with Flash. I know how to counter that ability."

"Okay," the boy nodded. "I'm from the future. That's my time machine. I'm like a...tourist."

"Cassandra?" Cassius asked.

"Wait, _that's_ Cassandra Cain-Wayne!?" the boy asked, several tendrils binding his arms and legs instantly, one pressing against his throat.

"Where did you learn that name?" Cassius growled.

"Dude," the boy said, eyes wide as he felt the tendrils vibrating at alternate frequencies, making it impossible for him to vibrate his molecules through them. "From the future! She's as famous as you are!"

Cassius looked to Cassandra, who looked troubled, but nodded.

"Yes," she said.

Cassius dropped the boy, the one by his throat remaining there. "From now on, you will _never_ use _anyone's_ last name. Understood?"

"Yes," the boy nodded.

"Good," Cassius said. "Your speed."

"Recreated Flash's experiment," the boy said. "Look, we should all be friends! I'm really one of you! Part of the heroic legacy, right? My name's Bart Allen. Ya know, grandson of Barry Allen, the Flash."

"Noted," Beast Boy said. "Not believed, but noted."

"Yes," Cassandra said.

Cassius sighed. "Alright. Let's try an easy one. Bart, what's the world like when you're from?"

"Oh, you know, same world, different problems," Bart said.

"No," Cassandra said instantly.

Cassius whipped him and he yelped. "I thought that might be the case. Good. You suck at lying."

"Wait, that was a lie detector test?" Bart asked.

"This whole thing has been," Cassius said. "I'm sure you learned about Cassandra's ability. She's been watching you to see if you lie the whole time. Her speech is limited, so she says yes and no to say if someone's lying or not."

"Her speech is limited?" Bart asked. "I never learned about that. Why?"

Cassius whipped him again. "Sorry, not convinced you're not a spy somehow."

"Oh come on!" Bart said. "I'm clearly Flash's grandson! I've got his speed, his amazing good looks...Frankly, I can't wait to meet him! Ya know, back when he was in his prime."

"I'm going to guess he's not the only one," Cassius said, Bart's eyes widening.

"The only one what?" Beast Boy asked.

"Beast Boy, Robin, the two of you go let the others know we have a speedster intruder and we've currently got the situation under control, but to stand by," Nightwing said.

"No," Cassius said. "They can stay."

"Alright," Nightwing shrugged, walking over with a glass of water. "You must be thirsty after coming all the way from the future just to have your favorite hero kick your ass. Here. Have a drink."

"Thanks," Bart said, taking a drink before pulling back and nodding. "Oh, you're trying to get a DNA sample. you need my spit." He spat into the water. "Such a Dick Grayson thing to do."

"How did..." Tim trailed off.

"See?" Bart asked. "I know stuff only a future boy would know."

"Or a Shadow," Cassius said.

"Harsh," Bart said. "Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Garfield Logan. Cassius-"

"I don't have a last name," Cassius said.

"Not yet," Bart said. "Wanna know what it is?"

"Utter one word and we see how fast you can heal a whole through your foot," Cassius growled.

Bart shrugged.

"Your name's Tim?" Beast Boy asked. "And yours is Dick?"

"Oops," Bart said. "Spoilers. This secret identity thing's so retro. I mean, you can call me Impulse, or Bart, or Bart Allen, or Bart Impulse Allen. It's all crash."

Everyone stared at him for a moment before Cassius whipped him.

"Is it possible he might be telling the truth?" Tim asked. "Could he really be from the future?"

"It's possible," Cassius said.

"Tell us something we don't know, yet," Beast Boy said. "When do I become leader of the Team? When do I join the Justice League? When do I get my own reality series?"

"Sorry BB, never was the best history student," Bart said. "Besides, we can't risk altering the time stream. We do that and we're _all_ feeling the mode."

"And the mode...would be bad?" Beast Boy asked.

"Doesn't get any worse," Bart said. "Always better to crash the mode."

"Uh...noted?" Beast Boy said unsurely.

"Do you happen to have a quiet mode?" Cassius asked, Bart and Beast Boy laughing.

"Recognize Malcom Duncan, A-One-Zero," the computer announced.

"Ooo, sounds like a door opening somewhere," Bart said. "And that's my cue."

"To go nowhere," Cassius said, his tendrils lashing out, only for Bart to flash past them, then out of the room.

Cassius blinked, then turned, watching as Beast Boy flew after Bart as a peregrine falcon.

"He doesn't stand a chance, does he?" Tim asked.

"Nope," Nightwing said. "Impulse is too fast." He pulled up the holographic screen, displaying Impulse's location with a red circle. "But at least we can track him."

"You put a tracer?" Tim asked. "It'll fall off at his speed."

"It won't," Nightwing assured him. "He drank it."

"Subcutaneous micro tracker in the water," Tim grinned. "Nice."

"Thanks," Nightwing said. "He's making a bee line for Central City." He raised his phone, hitting the speed dial. "Hey. Need your help."

Nightwing explained to what Cassius assumed was Wally quickly what was going on and where Impulse was going. Once he had, he hung up.

"Well, now that it's out of out hands," Cassius said. "I'm going to make some food. Anyone else hungry?"

"Yes please!" Beast Boy said. "Just...no meat, please."

"Of course," Cassius said.

"I'll take some too," Nightwing said.

"Make that three, please," Tim said.

Cassandra walked after Cassius to help him and he smiled, the two beginning to try and find something to cook.

* * *

Leave a review.


	51. Chapter 51

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Beach Brawl

Cassius looked up as Cassandra and Tim returned to the Cave from their date. Cassandra gave him a hug, both remaining there fore several seconds before she pulled back and walked away. Cassius returned his eyes to the small stones he was slowly carving using his goo claws. They were nothing fancy, and they weren't _going_ to be anything fancy. Just a couple of small pieces of Moonstone he'd found at Lake Sevan during a recent mission. He was in the process of shaping and polishing them with his goo. Both were about as close to perfect as they could get. They were blue Moonstone at the center, and a clear stone around it that turned milky white when viewed from the sides, allowing the blue to always be visible and the sides to always look white. He was cutting and polishing them into either spheres or whatever a three dimensional oval was called. He sighed, absorbing them into his hand for safekeeping just as Nightwing walked over.

"More gifts?" Nightwing asked.

"They both have a birthday coming up soon," Cassius said.

"Cassius, their birthdays are January twenty sixth and Valentines day, otherwise known as February fourteenth," Nightwing said. "It's currently March."

Cassius rolled his eyes. "Belated birthday presents, then."

Nightwing shook his head. "Just admit it."

"It's not like that," Cassius said.

Nightwing chuckled, shaking his hand. "Briefing's in roughly thirty."

"Unless Artemis and Wally want to go at it one last time before she joins us on a mission, in which case she'll be late," Cassius said.

"Dude," Nightwing said. "Seriously?"

"What?" Cassius asked. "If Barbara or Zatanna were going on a mission without you, which had a high likelihood of the entirety of the League of Assassins showing up and killing everyone, and you weren't going, wouldn't you want to say goodbye properly, just in case?"

Nightwing gave him an unimpressed look.

"Oh don't even," Cassius said. "You and I both know that you still fuck both of them every once in a while."

Nightwing rolled his eyes. "Yes, I have two...off and on girlfriends."

"Who you fuck equally regardless of which you're actively dating at the time, and who both are somehow okay with it," Cassius said.

"I'm getting an awfully judgmental attitude from you for someone in love with two fourteen-year-olds," Nightwing said.

"And we're done here," Cassius said, turning and walking away, flipping Nightwing off over his shoulder as Nightwing grinned victoriously.

* * *

"You sure you wanna be a part of this, Artemis?" Cassius asked. "If the Light is opposed to this, like we suspect they are, there's a high chance of the Shadows showing up. Including your family."

"And there's a chance Nemesis will make an appearance," Nightwing added.

"Let me worry about Nemesis," Cassius said. "Back to the original question."

"I'm sure," Artemis said. "My family won't stop me from helping my friends, and I won't let them stop this rocket."

Cassius nodded and they all fell silent as they flew. Finally, they reached Cape Canaveral, the Team spreading out to be ready for an attack while Megan went to take questions from the press while disguised as Martian Manhunter and levitating Connor, who was in one of Superman's suits, to make everyone think he was Superman. Once they were finished, Megan linked them all and Nightwing promptly denied La'gaan permission to join Megan in the Bio-Ship, instead telling him to stay in the water, since he was the only person on the Team besides Cassius who could fight underwater normally, and Cassius was currently on land, fully expecting to see Nemesis.

_"So, if he _does_ show up, how're you supposed to fight him?"_ Beast Boy asked. _"Isn't Nemesis supposed to be, like, Superman level?"_

_"A little below, but with more annoying party tricks," _Cassius said. _"However, he doesn't go all out against me, and will focus on me exclusively, allowing me to keep him busy, even if not beat him, while you fight anyone else who shows up."_

_"Whoa,"_ La'gaan said suddenly. _"Heads up minnows, we got bad guys. Black Manta's troopers, working some kind of platform beneath the surface just off shore. I'm takin' 'em down."_

_"Belay that,"_ Nightwing said instantly. _"Wait for backup."_

_"Nightwing, that's probably an underwater missile platform,"_ Cassius said. _"If they want to take the rocket down in one surprise strike, it's either that or a laser, but a laser probably would have fired by now, and the Bio-Ship would be able to detect the energy buildup."_

_"I'll scrounge up a rebreather from the cargo hold and help the rookie out," _Connor said, sounding grumpy and condescending.

_"Rookie?" _La'gaan asked. _"Neptune's beard, I don't need any help from the Boy of Steel!"_

_"Lagoon Boy, stand down!" _Nightwing snapped.

_"Sorry, you're breaking up,"_ La'gaan said, making static sounds in his mind.

_"There's no static on a psychic link!" _Nightwing snapped.

_"I'll go,"_ Cassius said. _"Let me know if he shows up."_

He turned, launching himself out to sea, then dove in, forming himself gills like Kaldur's. Instantly, he saw the platform and the Manta Troopers that La'gaan was fighting.

Cassius formed webbing for his fingers and toes and kicked off, forming scales over his skin to make himself slide through the water much faster. He shot past La'gaan in time to punch a trooper that was about to shoot him, smashing him into the ground. Several troopers opened fire at La'gaan and he used a trooper to shield himself before tearing into the troopers. As he did, Cassius dropped several with quick punches, making a beeline for the platform. it was a large flat platform with four short legs, two track-like sections standing up on the top, and a a missile on the underside of each rail.

_"Nightwing, definitely a rocket platform,"_ Cassius said, sending him a quick image of it. _"Moving to try and take it down. Be ready for it to fire."_

Several troopers grabbed him from behind and he spun, slamming a roundhouse kick into the first one's head, slamming his head into the next, then that one's into the third's. All three released him and he spun, kicking off of the middle one's chest and streaking forward, only for several blasts to slam into his chest.

_"Superboy, you got that rebreather?" _Nightwing asked.

_"Negative," _Connor said. _"_La'gaan_ didn't restock."_

_"Then take the helm,"_ Nightwing said. _"Megan, gill up and help Lagoon Boy and Void. Superboy, we need covering fire on the beach."_

_"Understood," _Connor said.

_"Controls reconfigured for manual control," _Megan said. _"I'm coming La'gaan."_

She dropped into the water and shifted her legs into a green tail like a mermaid.

_"What about Void?"_ La'gaan asked, slamming two troopers together. _"I'm not alone down here."_

_"Does it look like Void needs help?"_ Megan asked knowingly.

La'gaan slammed the trooper he was holding into the ground and looked over at Cassius just as he spun in a circle, swinging a trooper by the foot and smashing six more away before hurling his captive into a seventh that was about to shoot, making his shot hit an eighth. He took off toward the platform again and when four shot up at him from below, four goo arms erupted from his chest, slamming a punch into each of them before retracting. La'gaan huffed, slamming a trooper's gun into his head.

_"Freak,"_ La'gaan said.

_"Oh, just wait until we get home, La'gaan,"_ Cassius said, smirking as he extended his arms as goo, smashing a trooper into the ground. _"You're going to be my sparring partner after this mission."_

_"We'll see how confident you feel after I prove you're not special without those powers,"_ La'gaan said.

Cassius actually laughed, grabbing a trooper and spinning, hurling the trooper into the one at the platform's controls. _"I've reached the platform."_

He spun, deflected Kaldur's electrified hand and slammed a fist into his chest, hurling him away.

"Launch!" Kaldur ordered.

The trooper behind Cassius hit the launch button just before Cassius's goo hand hit him, only for two more goo hands to catch the rockets, holding them motionless.

"How long can you hold them while defending yourself?" Kaldur asked, using his Water Bearers to form a pair of blades.

"Plenty," Cassius said, allowing the rockets to move out of their rails as he used a pair of goo wakizashi to fend off Kaldur's blades.

Then, he flipped the rockets away from land and let them go, shouting in pain as the goo arms holding them were burned off about halfway. He retracted what was left and spun around Kaldur's blades, throwing a kick only for him to spin under it, then slam a kick into his gut, throwing him backward through the water for a short distance.

_"He's here!" _Nightwing shouted suddenly.

Cassius spun, rocketing up out of the water and formed a pair of wings, flapping hard once as he shifted into his goo form, streaking to the beach and arriving just in time to drill a punch into the side of Nemesis's head, launching him away, just before he could slash Cassandra. Cassandra nodded once and turned, running back to where Nightwing, Artemis, and Rose were fighting off a group of troopers.

"There you are," Nemesis smirked. "I had hoped to draw you out by killing the two most important people in your life, but this will suffice."

"You're not going to kill anyone ever again," Cassius growled. "I don't care what type of alien you are. You're going to die here."

Nemesis laughed. "You remembered a bit! Very good! But how much, I wonder?"

"Plenty," Cassius growled, crouching.

Nemesis laughed, putting his two wakizashi away. Cassius shot forward, punching at Nemesis, only for Nemesis to deflect his arm and slam his own fist into Cassius's body. A ripple ran over Cassius's body in a wave before he shot backward, bouncing across the sand before crashing down in the water. After a moment, he pushed himself up, narrowing his eyes.

"Not bad," Cassius growled.

"Is that all you can do?" Nemesis asked. "You were more of a threat the last time we met. What, so you remember I'm a threat and in exchange you forget how to fight me? Or are you just getting soft and complacent because of how weak your recent enemies have been? Do I need to bleed you into shape again, just like I used to?"

Cassius narrowed his eyes, crouching and readying himself again. He'd lost more power than he thought losing the goo from the rockets' thrusters. He'd lost almost a quarter of his power. Nemesis grinned and exploded forward, drilling a fist into Cassius's jaw. Cassius staggered away, then ducked under another fist, slamming an uppercut into Nemesis's jaw, knocking his helmet loose. Nemesis swore harshly, staggering away, and Cassius shot forward, slamming a fist into Nemesis's gut, then the side of his head. He staggered to the side, and Cassius threw a roundhouse kick at his head, only for Nemesis to duck under it, pulling his helmet back down into place before spinning, slamming a fist into Cassius's gut, launching him up the beach into the cement wall that was supposed to mark the minimum safe distance from rockets' thruster burn.

Cassius began to stand, only for Nemesis to slam a fist into his gut, lifting him into the air before grabbing him by the throat and slamming him down on his back on top of the cement wall, perfectly placed to be roasted alive. Then, to hold him there, he drove one of his wakizashi down through Cassius's pelvic hurdle, staking him to the stone.

"Do you remember what fire does to me?" Nemesis asked. "Let me refresh your memory. My species has three abilities. Ability bolstering, which gives us our strength, speed, and durability, matter control, which allows us to transform any non-organic substance within a specific range into weapons and control them telekinetically, and then our third ability. Can you remember?"

Cassius threw a punch at Nemesis, but he caught his arm and snapped his elbow, then slammed a fist into Cassius's face, sending his head spinning.

"You're right," Nemesis smirked. "That was a long time ago. I'll just tell you. My species _absorbs_ fire to heal or regain any strength we've used in a fight. So sitting right here, how do you think this fight will go?"

"Fuck you!" Cassius said, spitting in one of Nemesis's eyes.

His head jerked backward, and suddenly Cassius wasn't alone. Cassandra's sharpened katana slashed Nemesis across the back before she spun, slamming a windmill kick into the side of his head, knocking him away from Cassius just before Rose opened fire on him with one of the Manta Troopers' laser rifles. He shouted in pain, staggering away as blast after blast slammed into his torso. However, Cassius could see the burns healing almost instantly, the gash Cassandra had given him also healed already. Cassandra ripped the sword holding him down out and hurled it at him, the blade slicing from his left shoulder to his diaphragm before stopping. Cassius's wounds sealed almost instantly and he shot forward. He passed Rose just in time for his goo wakizashi to block Nemesis's, stopping him from killing Rose. He flipped over Cassius and Rose gasped, pushing Cassius aside before spinning the other way, narrowly avoiding Nemesis's blades when they buzz-sawed through the air between them. Then, just as he landed, Cassius slammed a windmill kick into his chest, hurling him backward.

"You saw that attack coming," Cassius said.

"Yes," Rose nodded.

"Good," Cassius nodded, forming a pair of swords identical to Rose's, but sharp, handing them to her before reforming his wakizashi. "Cassandra, head back and help the others. Rose's ability will be better for this fight than yours."

Cassandra hesitated, but nodded. "Please."

"We'll be okay," Cassius said. "I promise."

She nodded and turned, running toward where Artemis and Nightwing were fighting Manta's troopers still, now including Kaldur. Above them, Connor was in the Bio-Ship, using its laser to destroy rockets as they were fired. Cassius wanted to ask La'gaan why he hadn't taken out the platform yet, but before he could, Rose stepped past him, deflecting one of Nemesis's swords before Cassius slammed a fist into Nemesis's face, rocking him backward. Rose stepped forward instantly, slashing Nemesis several times before stepping back and to the right just before Nemesis slashed upward, missing. Cassius stepped forward, slashing at him, only for Nemesis to deflect the blade, then stab at Cassius. Cassius deflected it and slammed a spring punch into Nemesis's face, sending him exploding backward across the sand. As he flew, however, his helmet spun away. He crashed down hard and Cassius smirked, starting forward, only to leap backward as several bullets slammed into the ground at his feet. He looked up as Deathstroke landed beside Nemesis's helmet and picked it up, then walked over to Nemesis, kneeling and putting it back onto Nemesis's head.

"Looks like he underestimated you," Deathstroke said. "That's my girl. You, on the other hand, Cassius, are very disappointing. You had to be saved by a little girl, and only won because Rose was splitting his attention."

"That wasn't why," Cassius said. "He froze."

Deathstroke shrugged. "You still couldn't beat him without a little girl's help."

Cassius shook his head in annoyance, crouching. "Fight or beat it."

Deathstroke chuckled. "Oh, you and I'll get to go at it again soon. For now, though, I'm just here to collect our asset." He slung Nemesis over his shoulder before a Boom Tube portal appeared behind him. "Be good Rose. Oh, and Cassius, for the record, I think she's better off with you. She'll live longer."

Then, he turned, walking through the portal. Cassius sighed, retracting his goo swords, and Rose handed back the ones she was holding. Cassius absorbed those too, and turned to the remaining fight just as Artemis moved to attack Kaldur. However, his left water hammer batted her bow aside as he spun back toward her from his attack against Nightwing, who was just barely crashing to the ground off to the side, before the right turned into a blade and stabbed her through the chest.

"Welcome back," Kaldur snarled before pulling his blade back.

Cassius exploded forward instantly, reaching Kaldur with a blunt goo greatsword at the same time as Cassandra did, wielding her blunted wakizashi. Kaldur swore, struggling to fend them off, having to ignore a blow from one of their blunted blades one after another before Cassius finally slammed a goo fist down on his back, flattening him into the sand. However, as he moved to finish him, Rose shot a grappling hook through his abdomen and yanked him back just as Cassandra tackled him backward. A moment later, a bonfire erupted to life between Cassius and Kaldur, allowing him to retreat into the water. Cassius ripped the hook out of his back and shouted in pain.

"I fucking hate it when you two do that!" Cassius growled, then turned, running to Artemis, where Nightwing was trying to resuscitate her, shoving Nightwing aside. "Move, I can use my goo to..." He stared at the red staining her undamaged costume in the front, not a single wound marring her. "Oh, you have _got_ to be fucking kidding me. Nightwing, you and I are going to have a _very_ long conversation after this."

"Why are you just sitting there?" Connor asked over the communicators.

"The blade severed her aorta," Cassius said.

"So?" Connor asked. "Can't you stitch it back together with your goo?"

"A severed aorta is an instant death," Rose said. "She's gone."

Cassius reached down, lifting her upper body and using his goo to make a slit in the front and back of her uniform to sell the illusion, then a small scratch in her skin where the wounds should be.

"Take her," Cassius said. "I'll go and get Megan. Our link's dead, so she's probably unconscious."

"You weren't monitoring during your fight, I think," Nightwing said. "She said they took Lagoon Boy."

"Great," he sighed. "I'll be back in a bit. And I meant it. We _are_ going to have that conversation."

Nightwing nodded, and Cassius headed out into the water after Megan, only for her to meet him part way, both turning and returning to Nightwing and Artemis. After a moment, Connor had landed the Bio-Ship and everyone loaded up, Cassius sitting with Artemis's body to keep her from being thrown around during the flight.

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	52. Chapter 52

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Explanation

Cassius walked into the warehouse in Blüdhaven, Cassandra and Rose both following, and walked to the center, where Nightwing was staring at a picture of himself without his mask and a surprised Artemis, also out of costume.

"We'll laugh about this someday," Nightwing muttered to himself.

"You ready to talk?" Cassius asked, Nightwing looking up at him.

However, just as he did, a door closed off to the side and Cassius formed his mask, the four of them walking toward the sound.

"Wally?" Nightwing called out softly.

"No," Kaldur said, stepping into view from behind several boxes.

Cassandra and Rose both grabbed their blunted blades, only for Cassius's goo hands to catch them, holding them in place. A moment later, Wally walked into view behind Kaldur, hands in his pockets, and raised an eyebrow at Cassius and the girls.

"I wasn't expecting to see so many faces when I came to hear about what happened to Artemis," Wally said.

"Well, next time you want to fake someone's death, you should make sure to break the skin in case someone wants to check on them," Cassius said. "Your welcome, by the way."

"You didn't have to actually cut me," Artemis said, stepping into view in a blue jacket and pulling the hood down.

"Had to make it convincing," Cassius said. "Nice touch, using a drug to slow her heart rate to one beat a minute."

"You knew?" Rose asked.

"As soon as I got to her and Nightwing, I saw that there was a lot of fake blood, but his blade didn't break her skin," Cassius said. "So I gave her a couple scratches to sell the illusion."

"I take it the ruse was successful?" Kaldur asked.

"Almost too successful," Nightwing said. "The Team and the League are in mourning. They may never forgive us."

"And still only we four...now seven, know the secret?" Kaldur asked.

"This secret and the other," Nightwing said. "That you've been in deep cover within Black Manta's organization since leaving the Team."

"Speaking of people knowing the secret, Megan needs to be told," Cassius said. "If not, she's going to obliterate Kaldur's mind if she gets the chance."

"What do you mean?" Kaldur asked.

"Everyone she 'interrogates' with her telepathy, she rips apart until she gets what she needs and leaves them in a catatonic state," Cassius said. "She'll do the same to you if we don't tell her what's going on."

"We can't risk it," Nightwing said. "Their reactions need to be realistic."

"Thanks to your warning, I will be ready," Kaldur said.

"How'd the ruse go on your end?" Nightwing asked.

"It was successful," Kaldur said. "I have proven my loyalty to my biological father. He is moving me up the ladder, bringing me closer to the Light, and their unknown partner."

"Hold on," Rose said. "If you're still a good guy, why'd you try to burn Cassius?"

"I saw you fighting Nemesis successfully, meaning that your power was functioning, and I made sure to telegraph an attack for Cassandra. There was no chance of Cassius being successfully harmed by those flames. I simply needed a convincing reason to be allowed to escape."

"Yeah, sorry for kicking your ass," Cassius said.

"No," Cassandra said.

Kaldur smiled. "I believe it was well-deserved. And it was nothing that will not heal."

"Kaldur, what happened with the comm sat?" Nightwing asked. "And where is La'gaan? Both of those were most definitely _not_ according to plan."

"It was the only way to save his life _and_ maintain my cover," Kaldur said.

"I'm not blaming you," Nightwing said. "I know you've been forced to make impossible decisions, like choosing between saving the Kroloteans on Malina Island-"

"Or saving my friends," Kaldur finished. "That's why I said there was a bomb even when I knew Cassius had one of the Troopers' communicators. And I _will_ find a way to save La'gaan. You have my word."

"So what now?" Artemis asked, she and Wally squeezing each other's hand for a moment.

Nightwing pulled out a black cloth choker with a small, teardrop-shaped, amber pendant, walking over to her, putting it around her neck and fastening it.

"Uh, dud, why are you giving bling to my dead girlfriend?" Wally asked.

"Glamour charm," Nightwing said. "Courtesy of Zatanna. Physio-morphic spell, I think. She said it backwards."

"Wow," Wally said, turning to inspect Artemis, who looked exactly the same. "You look...exactly the same."

"Quality spell," Cassius nodded. "So incredibly placed, you can't even tell it's active."

"To the now seven of us," Nightwing said. "And _only_ us. But to anyone else, you're an entirely different person."

"The more impressive trick is how you got something so specific from Zatanna without revealing _who_ or _what_ it was for," Artemis said.

"He probably just asked her for it after they fucked," Cassius said. "Or right before hand."

"Dude," Nightwing said. "Seriously. You want to go there right now? With all of us present?"

"It is time," Kaldur said, Artemis nodding.

Wally stepped forward, hugging and kissing Artemis one last time.

"What could go wrong?" Artemis asked worriedly.

Wally laughed. "Don't _say_ that!"

He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, not wanting to let her go. Nightwing set a hand on his shoulder and Artemis sighed quietly, turning and walking away with Kaldur. As they did, Cassius and the others headed up to the roof, watching them head into Kaldur's Manta Flier and submerge.

"We're through the hard part," Nightwing said. "They're in."

"Who are you kidding?" Wally asked. "It only gets more dangerous from here."

"You're right," Cassius said. "However, Now that she's hidden on the bad guy side, no one is going to be trying to kill her in every fight like they do the people on our side. As long as her cover remains, she's safer there. And Artemis was raised by Shadows as well, even if it _was_ only Sportsmaster. She knows how it works well enough to not blow her cover."

Wally was silent as well for a moment before nodding. "I suppose you have a point."

"Come on," Nightwing said. "We should get going. You want a lift?"

"Sure," Wally nodded.

They all got on the Bio-Ship, flying to Wally's house first, then to the Cave. Once they'd landed, Cassius turned to Rose and Cassandra.

"Where'd we go?" Cassius asked.

"Wally's house," Rose said.

"Wally got mad and threw us all out of the house, refusing to speak to Nightwing or you ever again," Cassandra signed.

"Sounds about right," Nightwing nodded. "Come on. And...don't tell Megan. Her reaction will be the most telling."

The others nodded, though Cassius still felt like it was a bad idea. As they walked, Cassandra tugged Cassius's sleeve to get his attention.

"I'm going to need to stay with you every night during this," Cassandra signed. "I'll be too worried to sleep well."

"Whatever you need," Cassius nodded. "Both of you."

Both girls nodded and they made themselves heart broken before they reached the living room where everyone was standing around silently. After a few minutes of that, everyone scattered to their rooms without a word. Cassandra and Rose both followed Cassius to his room after changing into pajamas, and this time, Cassandra actually brought a duffel bag filled with extra pairs, just for convenience. Cassius chuckled, nodding, and climbed into bed, the girls joining him a few seconds later.

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	53. Chapter 53

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Home Defense

Cassius took the device from Impulse and stared at it, then looked to Nightwing, who frowned. "I guess Impulse is a good name for you."

"Why?" Impulse asked.

"Because you don't think things through," Cassius said. "How hard did you have to work to take this, and did he try to take it back?"

Impulse scoffed. "I'm too fast for that."

"So, no, then," Cassius said, dropping it and smashing it with his foot. "Nightwing, sound the alert. We're about to have company."

Nightwing nodded and reached out to the computer, activating the alert. Within seconds, ever member of the Team who was currently in the Cave, less than half of them, was present. Cassius switched the alert off.

"What's going on?" Connor asked.

"Impulse brought unknown alien tech into the cave, which he swiped from Kaldur," Cassius said. "Kaldur will be here soon with Icicle Jr., the Terror Twins, and a new girl. Assume security's been hacked."

"Everyone scatter to any potential entrance into the Cave," Nightwing said. "Void, myself, and Orphan will be in the Hangar. Ravager, Superboy, and Robin take the front door. The rest of you, the back."

Everyone split up according to the groups he'd assigned and headed to their positions to wait. Finally, Kaldur rose from the water, a duffel bag over his shoulder. Cassius looked behind Kaldur, only for Kaldur to shake his head. Cassius shot forward, but Kaldur's free hand raised its Water Bearer, the handle connected to the water below him. In the span of time it took Cassius to reach Kaldur, a massive water snake exploded into all three heroes, slamming them into the wall before Artemis, now with her glamour charm making her hair appear black and wearing a gold, tiger-themed costume, landed over them, quickly putting a collar onto all three. Cassius felt his powers shut down, leaving him in his armor, complete with all the usual extras the Batman Inc members had like concealed lockpicks in the fingers, wrist-mounted supercomputers with holographic interfaces, and a full utility belt. Artemis instantly pressed a switch, electricity screaming over all three of her captives' bodies.

"Right about now, our associates should be taking down the rest of the Team," Kaldur said. "Get up."

Cassius stood, curling his hands into fists, only for Artemis to hold a katana to Cassandra's throat.

"Make a move, and she dies," Artemis warned.

Cassius nodded and the three of them were led to the briefing room. As they walked, Cassius took a tracer from Nightwing and grit his teeth as he pushed it into his skin, embedding it in his palm. Then, they were all shoved to their knees as Kaldur stepped out in front of them, looking around at the assembled Team members.

"Any trouble?" Kaldur asked.

"None," Tommy Terror said.

"Don't move!" Jaime shouted suddenly, the armor on both hands formed into a pair of sonic cannons.

"You choose your weapons poorly," Kaldur said. "Those weapons will kill Void. And also, you should know all the facts before you threaten someone." He knelt, setting the duffel bag on its end and opening it. "This is the same kind of bomb that destroyed Malina Island, and my finger is currently on the dead-man switch. If my thumb comes off of this button, for any reason, Mount Justice falls."

Jaime hesitated before floating to the ground and retracting his cannons, raising his hands. "We're standing down."

"Wise choice," Kaldur said as Tuppence Terror collared Jaime. "Escort Beetle, Beast Boy, Void, Orphan, and Ravager to the Flier."

"What about these four?" Artemis asked, gesturing to Connor, Nightwing, Cassandra, and Rose.

"As hostages here, they have value," Kaldur said. "But Nightwing, Cassandra, and Rose are ordinary humans, and Superboy is a human-Kryptonian hybrid clone. Neither category is of any interest to our partner."

"Aqualad!" Nightwing seethed. "You'll regret this!"

Kaldur walked over to Nightwing and drilled a fist into his gut hard enough to lift him into the air with a shout of pain. "I believe I have outgrown the name Aqualad, as well as anything resembling regret. I will leave the bomb here as a souvenir. Oh, and the dead-man switch has a five-mile range. Do _not_ pursue."

As he turned to walk out, Artemis pulled Cassius to his feet, walking out of the Cave with him and Kaldur. Cassius glanced at his right hand, and the tiny slit in his suit's glove and his palm. It hurt like a bitch to not be able to reshape his hand as goo to adjust it more comfortably, but he wasn't about to complain. it was the best way to let Rose and Cassandra know he was okay, since the particular tracer he took doubled as a vital signs monitor.

"So, we're headed to a five-star resort, right?" Cassius asked. "Beaches, babes, alcoholic drinks with pretty colors and umbrellas?"

"You're going to be loaded into a pod, shipped off to my employers' partner, and likely tortured constantly," Kaldur said darkly.

"Oh, so, like, life with the League of Shadows round two," Cassius said. "Alright. That's not so bad."

"You would be wise to stop speaking," Kaldur said. "If you vex me, I will break you before sending you to them."

Cassius smiled and shrugged, and a few minutes later, he was loaded onto the flier, being led to the cockpit and being sat down where he could see Mount Justice and the beach, Beast Boy and Impulse sitting beside him, both unconscious still. Just as he was loaded, Blue Beetle's collar shorted out and his hands grew into massive spheres with small studs over it. He spun, smashing both Icicle Jr. and Artemis away, then turned as one hand returned to normal and the other turned into a plasma cannon, which blasted Aqualad, sending him crashing into the side of a rock, the switch bouncing away. Cassius gut dropped, but nothing happened. Cassius's eyes widened. Had it been a bluff? That didn't seem right. Kaldur had stressed that the bomb was going to go off, and had even warned Nightwing about the range limit. Cassius frowned as Beetle leapt at Kaldur, only for Kaldur to electrocute the center of his chest. Beetle shouted in agony, staggering away with a hole in his chest and Artemis blew a tranquilizer dart into his exposed skin, dropping him. After a few moments, the rest of Kaldur's group returned and the flier took off, flying away.

"I can't believe we didn't kill Superboy while we had the chance!" Tommy Terror said.

"Boss fish still has a soft spot," Icicle Jr. said.

"Do it," Kaldur said to Artemis.

Artemis pulled her mask off. "You sure?"

"Do it," Kaldur said, turning back to the front.

Artemis sighed and pressed the real detonator's switch. A moment later, the explosion erupted into a massive fireball identical to the one that had replaced Malina Island. Cassius felt his chest constrict agonizingly as he stared at the glowing orange pillar of smoke. He swallowed hard, glancing at the others. Beast Boy and Impulse were in shock, and Blue Beetle was still unconscious. Cassius sighed, sitting down hard and grit his teeth.

"Are you satisfied now?" Kaldur asked.

"Are they dead?" Tommy asked.

"Probably not," Artemis said.

"Then no," Icicle Jr. said.

"Then it is a good thing that your satisfaction is not a priority during this mission," Kaldur said.

They all fell silent, Artemis putting her mask back on and after multiple hours, they finally docked with Black Manta's much larger flier. The four prisoners were loaded up into pill-shaped pods that opened down the center in horizontal shutter-like sections that reached from the sides toward the front. A sleeping gas was pumped into the cells and Cassius sighed, allowing himself to drift off to sleep.

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	54. Chapter 54

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Worst Week Ever

Cassius grit his teeth as electricity screamed over his body. Agony lanced through him constantly, every muscle in his body rigid, but he remained silent, eyes trained on the female scientist, who was watching him interestedly. She wore a red and white robe, had pale green skin that reminded him of Blue Beetle's armor, and had a solid, transparent face shield over the lower half of her face. She had been torturing Beast Boy and Impulse constantly for the last three days since their capture, and struggling to do the same to Cassius. However, thanks to Cassius having been subjected to the most unbearable agony Cain, Lady Shiva, and Deathstroke could think of, the electricity searing through his body now was little more than an unpleasant burning sensation, and even with his powers shut down, his body's physiology was still resistant to electricity.

"You are different than the others," the scientist said. "Aren't you in pain?"

"Lady, you do _not_ know what pain is," Cassius said, raising his arms, which were supposed to be restrained at his sides, crossing his arms and smirking challengingly. "I was expecting to at least get a massage, not a tickling competition."

The scientist grinned sadistically, reaching over and slowly turning a dial. The electricity hitting him began to increase and he grit his teeth, tightening his grip on his biceps, maintaining his challenging smirk. Finally, her hand stopped as it hit the maximum setting. He had to force himself to breathe normally now, and his every cell felt like it was on fire, but he could resist still."

"Oh, you are going to be a favorite of mine," the scientist said. "Very well. If the electricity won't get results, we'll try something else."

She turned the dial back, ending electricity, only to hit two buttons and begin to turn it again. This time, Cassius felt his cells beginning to vibrate slowly as ultra-low-frequency soundwaves began to fill the pod. His gut dropped instantly as the soundwaves began to rise quickly, his cells beginning to vibrate more and more. A low vibrating tone began to register in his ears, climbing rapidly in pitch until it had climbed past a while to a deafening, continuous shriek. As it climbed, Cassius's cells vibrated faster and faster. Then, finally, his body began to tear itself apart. He tried to inhale and blood filled his wind pipe and throat, making him cough, then vomit blood, and the tone began to drop. Then, it began to pulsate at varying frequency and levels, dropping to an annoyingly high scream in his ears that gave him a migraine, then spiking to a deafening shriek that ripped his body apart a little at a time. After a few moments, the sound stopped before the pod opened and the scientist attached a cord from something small and round to his collar. And suddenly, he was healing. He couldn't utilize his goo, but he was healing. She unplugged the device and restrained his arms again before sealing the pod and returning to the controls, pressing a button. And then the sound resumed. Thanks to his healing being allowed, in between bouts of being ripped to shreds, his body struggled to heal him. It was losing, but only slowly. It would probably take days for him to die. During which time, he'd be in complete, unbearable agony that even the League of Shadows had never managed to achieve.

* * *

Cassius tried to scream, but all that came out was a wet gurgle and a spray of blood, bile, and saliva, and maybe a little bit of liquified tissue. The gurgle didn't even reach his own ears, the pulsating shriek inside the pod completely drowning it out as it ripped him apart on a cellular level. He didn't know how long he'd been there. It could have been days. It could have been minutes. It could have been years. He couldn't remember. He vaguely remembered the scientist coming and going, as well as a male with a blue hat and a blue and white robe, so he was pretty sure it was somewhere in the neighborhood of days. He wasn't sure how many though. Maybe only one. Maybe a dozen.

He hoped Cassandra and Rose were okay. He hoped they got out safely. He hoped they were alive. He wished he could see them. Show them he was alright. See that they were alright. He wished he could _be_ alright to show them. He forced his eyes open as the scientist stepped up to the pod, only for his left eye to fall from his head. And still that ungodly shrieking continued.

* * *

Days. It had to have been days. It had been going on for _so long_. He was starting to loose bits of skin now. He'd lost both eyes, several teeth, his fingernails had just fallen out, his toenails had come loose and were floating somewhere in the blood and liquified flesh that was slightly deeper than his ankles in the bottom of the pod.

So long. He was pretty sure he'd lost his tongue several hours ago. He'd suddenly begun to gag and when his head fell forward, an especially large deluge of liquified Cassius had poured out of his mouth before he'd coughed up more. It was hard to tell when he couldn't see the blood soup he was standing in. And still the pod shrieked. Still, it worked his atoms apart one by one.

* * *

Cassandra and Rose clenched their fists tightly, waiting to be told to break free. Cassius's tracer's tracking systems had been blocked even before they'd left Mount Justice, apparently unable to get through whatever pod he was in, but the vital signs monitor function had remained online. As such, it had been a very long week of waiting, watching as Cassius's vitals remained resolutely in critical condition born of ceaseless torture, then slowly began to fail, even while still being in critical condition. They were out of time. They'd finally managed to hitch a ride with a group of teens being taken by Manta Troopers, along with Barbara and Tim, who had Bumblebee inside his jacket, and were in a submerged ship that seemed to be where all of the abducted teens were being brought. Megan was inside, invisible, and was searching for the others, holding a telepathic link with the four of them, plus Nightwing and Wonder Girl. Even Cassandra was linked for this mission, though she was being careful not to project.

_"I found Gar and Bart," _Megan reported. _"They're unconscious, but alive. No sign of Jaime, Cassius, or La'gaan."_

_"We've got eyes on Lagoon Boy, and...Shimmer?" _Barbara responded. _"Uh, plus four civilians and all the teens we came with."_

_"What about Cassius?"_ Rose asked from her own pod. _"Where is he!?"_

_"Stay calm, Rose," _Nightwing said. _"We'll find him."_

_"OH MY GOD! ! !"_ Megan all but shrieked into their minds suddenly, a wave of nausea briefly transferring across to them.

_"What happened?"_ Nightwing asked.

_"I found Cassius!"_ Megan said urgently. _"It's horrible! They're using soundwaves to torture him and it's tearing him apart! Literally!"_

_"We're unsupervised now!" _Barbara said._ "But Blue's still unaccounted for, and-"_

_"We're going now!"_ Rose said. _"It'll probably trigger an alarm, but Cassius needs to be rescued now!"_

_"Go, now!" _Nightwing said. _"You, too, Miss M. Get our boys!"_

_"I can't take Cassius!"_ Megan said. _"His condition's too severe. If I open the pod, I could kill him!"_

_"Then rescue the other two and shut that sound off!"_ Nightwing ordered.

_"We're free!"_ Rose said, just as she and Cassandra both finished picking the locks on their hands, freeing themselves the rest of the way from the pods in seconds.

As expected, an alarm began to scream instantly. At the same time, Megan shouted in surprise.

_"What?"_ Nightwing asked.

_"The alarm!" _Megan shouted. _"It's adding to the soundwaves in his pod! And I don't know how to shut them off!"_

_"We're coming!" _Rose said.

_"Shit!" _Megan swore suddenly. _"Manta Troopers and aliens! A lot of them!"_

_"Can you get Cassius's pod?"_ Nightwing asked.

_"Not without it being blasted and turned into a fireball," _Megan said.

_"Then get Beast Boy and Impulse out!"_ Nightwing said.

_"Docking bay secured," _Connor said. _"I can go after Cassius."_

_"We're going!"_ Rose said, she and Cassandra sprinting for the door.

"Wait!" Tim shouted. "You need back up!"

"Robin, watch out!" Batgirl shouted, shoving him backward, making a laser blast miss him, only for it to hit Cassandra in the back instead, blasting her wakizashi off.

She didn't even slow down and neither did Rose. Before anyone could go after them, a blonde that had been transported with them ran after them, grabbing Cassandra's sword on the way past it.

"Wait, come back!" Batgirl shouted.

"No time!" Tim said. "Come on!"

He charged the alien troops swarming into the room and Barbara groaned, running to help him. As they did, the blonde caught up with Rose and Cassandra, who were being swarmed by both sets of enemy troops, just in time to slam the sword into the back of an alien's head, dropping him. Several turned to her, but it was enough of a distraction for Rose and Cassandra to slaughter the rest of the aliens, Cassandra with her sharp, collapsible sword and Rose with one sword and her live ammo pistol. As soon as the last of the troops were dead, they continued to run for the lab where Cassius was being held. The blonde followed, for lack of a better idea, and followed the trail of carnage and corpses the two girls were leaving. As they reached the door to the lab, Cassandra's blade shattered partway through a Manta Trooper. She flipped over him instantly, grabbing a pair of blade sections and hurled them, one embedding itself into a Manta Trooper at the control panel in the center of the room, and the other in an alien aiming at Cassius's pod with a blaster rifle.

_"We've reached the lab!" _Rose reported. _"I'm going to shut down the sound!"_

_"Hurry!"_ Nightwing said.

As Rose reached the controls, she saw a dial with a gauge around it lit up partway and twisted it down. Almost instantly, the muffled, gurgling scream coming from Cassius's pod tapered off. Cassandra looked in and shrieked in fear and grief, beginning to sob even as she pulled at the pod, accomplishing nothing.

"We have to open it!" the blonde that had come with them said. "Whatever his condition, if we're going to get him out of here, we need to open it!"

Cassandra pressed several buttons on the front of the pod, only for several harsh, warbling tones to shout at her. Finally, she shouted in rage, snatching a round object just long enough for two hands off of the dead alien at her feet, the top end of it bearing a thin opening across the middle and being angled outward slightly. She slammed the bottom end of the object into the controls for the pod, but it didn't damage it. It _did_, however, make Cassandra's thumb slip upward and press a small pressure switch on the side of the object at the top, a jagged, curved blade made of liquid metal forming instantly. Cassandra didn't even take a moment to question it before slashing the controls and pressing the switch again, the blade retracting into the hilt in under a second before Cassandra cast the handle aside, beginning to pull at the center of the pod. The blonde grabbed the handle, pocketing it before joining Cassandra and helping her pull the pod open. After a moment of trying to force only the pieces with the controls open, the rest suddenly opened once they'd gotten theirs open and revealed Cassius in his entirety, the blood, bile, and liquified tissue filling the bottom few inches of the pod flooding out. The blonde turned as soon as she saw the inside of the pond, vomiting. A second later, Rose skidded to a stop beside them, eyes wide, and stared into the pod.

_"Orphan, Ravager!" _Nightwing said. _"Do you have Cassius!?"_

_"It's..."_

* * *

Sirens. A pulsating shriek. Pain. An all-consuming agony radiating from head to spine to body in an unbearable flood. Every cell burning. Every scream sending blood flying past red-stained teeth. Every gasp of breath feeling like liquid fire.

This was his existence. He didn't know how long. He couldn't remember. He just knew it was. The pain was infinite, and indescribable. Unending. Whatever he had been before, the pain wiped away. All he was, all he knew, was agony. Pain. Suffering. He wanted it to end. Somehow. Some way. He wanted it to end. And yet, it dragged on.

He tried to judge by the beating of his heart, but he lost track, and he lost time. He couldn't remember when he had started. He couldn't remember how many there had been. Too many.

But he should know. He should. But know what? What was he trying to remember? What was he doing? All he could remember was the pain. All he knew was pain. All he was. His very existence was consumed by pain. An all-consuming agony radiating from head to spine to body in an unbearable flood. Every cell burning. Every scream sending blood flying past red-stained teeth. Every gasp of breath feeling like liquid fire.

He wanted it to stop. Needed it to stop. And suddenly, it did. Everything just stopped. There was no pain, there was no light, no sound, no pain. He was in complete and utter nothingness. It wasn't so bad after the pain, and yet, something about it didn't feel right. Something was nagging at the back of his mind. He wanted to let it in, but every time he tried, the feeling faded. He growled in frustration. Annoying little mind itch. Fine. Let it stay. He'd just enjoy his void. He frowned. The feeling swelled in response to the word. He tried to focus on it, but it again faded. He sighed. Whatever. It probably wasn't important. He just wanted to be able to enjoy not being in pain for the first time in his existence. He could try to remember who he was later.

He let himself drift, feeling himself being drawn further and further into the void. Into the nothingness. The absence of feeling, or sound. However, slowly, something began to draw him back. He frowned. He didn't want to go back. Back was where the pain was. It had to be. That was all he had known. There had been nothing else. He couldn't go back. But then, all at once, the pain found him. Agony, searing hot and jagged and merciless as an angle grinder ripped into his brain, and yet, he couldn't even scream through the void.

* * *

Cassandra's hand tightened around Cassius's as his freshly regrown eyes slowly began to open. He stared blankly up at the ceiling in silence for several long moments before his eyes began to roll, slowly sweeping around the room. His gaze returned to her once he'd finished his inspection of the sterile white room, this time remaining fixed on her face for several long seconds, Cassandra not even daring to breathe.

"Cass...an...dra," Cassius rasped, voice barely audible.

"Cassius!" Cassandra sobbed, throwing her arms around him and sobbing hard.

"I'm...sor...ry," he rasped. "I...scared...you."

Cassandra couldn't respond, simply holding him tighter, and after a moment, the door opened and Rose walked in, smiling as her eye watered.

"Rose," Cassius rasped, struggling to hold a hand up.

She all but ran over, going to his other side before wrapping her arms around him as well.

"We thought we'd lost you!" Rose sobbed.

"What...happ...ened?" he asked.

Rose sat up and sniffed, forcing herself under control so she could talk, Cassius taking her hand in place of holding her.

"You were with the aliens, the Reach, for a week," Rose said. "Do you remember what they did?"

Cassius nodded.

Rose nodded. "By the time we found you, half of your body was missing skin, you'd lost more than half of your teeth, both eyes, all of your fingernails and tow nails, and most of your scalp. There was blood and...liquified flesh filling the bottom of the pod."

Cassius grimaced.

"Cassandra and I had to defend us from Manta Troops and Reach soldiers the entire way out, so Stephanie Brown, one of the teens we were with when we snuck onto the ship where they were holding you, carried you out for us," Rose continued. "We might not have been able to save you without her."

"Sorry!" Cassandra said suddenly. "Sorry!"

"Cassy," Cassius smiled, letting go of Rose's hand for a moment so he could hold Cassandra tightly and comfort her. "I'm...not mad. You...saved me."

"It's not because we couldn't save you sooner, or because we needed help," Rose said. "She's apologizing because...both of us...we killed anyone who got in our way. A couple dozen Manta Troops and a few dozen Reach soldiers. We killed them all."

Cassius stared at her for a moment before squeezing Cassandra tighter.

"Sorry!" Cassandra sobbed.

"It's...alright," Cassius assured her. "I'm...not mad. You did...what you...had to. You...saved me."

Cassandra continued to sob, so Cassius looked to Rose.

"On the way out, we met a big alien wearing the same armor as Jaime has, but black," Rose said. "Turns out Jaime's armor and scarab are Reach tech. Before we could warn the public about the Reach, the Reach announced themselves to the public under the guise of arriving peacefully, so now we can't touch them. They told the public about the Team, the Watchtower, and also disabled a barrier that an intergalactic gladiator put around the Hall of Justice when he attacked Captain Marvel, Connor, Megan, Zatanna, Bumblebee, and Mal. Then they took the gladiator to restrain him, and the Justice League had no way to stop it."

"They...made us...look...bad," Cassius summarized.

"Yes," Rose nodded.

"How...long..."

"About a week," Rose said. "You've been in critical condition and only barely healing for about a week."

He nodded, squeezing Cassandra, who had finally managed to calm down a bit, before holding his other arm out for Rose, who climbed onto the bet with the other two in order to hold Cassius as well. Cassius closed his eyes, focusing to try and get his body to heal faster, at least enough to talk normally. After a few minutes, Dick waked in in civilian clothes and sat beside the bed.

"How're you feeling?" Dick asked.

"Great," Cassius said, finally able to speak again, but exhausted from controlling his goo now. "You should really consider giving the Reach Resort a try. Round the clock massages. Tons of special attention. It's just great."

Dick shook his head, smirking. "Well, you being a smartass is a good sign. At least we know you'll be alright."

Cassius smiled. "Do you know about..."

"About their method for reaching you?" Dick asked. "Yeah. They told us as soon as we were on the Bio-Ship. Batman won't be happy when he gets back, but I don't blame them, especially after seeing your condition. If they'd taken the time to spare anyone, they might not have made it to you in time. The remaining members of the League all agreed that they shouldn't be punished, given the circumstances."

Cassius nodded. "Good."

"I'm not sure if they told you, but Black Canary's been talking to everyone who was taken, both to figure out if they need counseling and how to help, and also to figure out what they wanted," Dick said. "Now that you're awake, she can come see you whenever you're ready."

"For counseling, yes please," Cassius said. "But I can tell you what they wanted. They wanted to study the Meta-Gene that some humans carry. It's a genetic marker that allows anyone with it to develop superpowers under extreme levels of stress or trauma. They want to copy and weaponize it. It's the same reason the League of Shadows experimented on me and ended up turning me into Void."

"Really?" Dick frowned, then blinked. "You remember more?"

"I remember everything," Cassius said. "Probably the only good thing to come out of this whole mess. I remember my entire past now. including Nemesis's secret and what the Reach wants, since it was under their orders that the Light, through the League of Shadows, experimented on me."

Dick nodded. "Should I get the League?"

"Just Canary for now," Cassius said. "It's long past time for me to finally tell them who I used to be, but I'd rather tell only Canary, then have her pass it along, rather than deal with everyone's reactions at once. I'm too tired for that."

Dick nodded. "I'll be back with her in a few minutes."

Cassius nodded and Dick left. Cassius looked down at the girls in his arms, his eyes softening and his mouth curling into a frown. They were both okay, though her could see bandages around Cassandra's lower torso where her shirt had pulled up a bit and wrapping over Rose's right shoulder, just barely peeking out from under her shirt's collar. He tightened his hold on them. He was so happy they were alive, but even though he knew it wasn't his fault, some part of him told him over and over that it was his fault they'd been hurt. He let out a slow sigh, pushing the thoughts away and closing his eyes, allowing his exhaustion to claim him. Canary could wake him up when she got there, or she would be willing to wait for him to wake up.

* * *

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	55. Chapter 55

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Identity

Canary sat beside Cassius's bed with Dick, and Cassius pushed himself up into a seated position, leaning back against the headboard, Rose and Cassandra sitting up with him, neither having left his arms except for food or to use the bathroom since he had woken up about a day ago.

"So, Dick tells me you know what the Reach is after, and also your past life and want to tell me about it?" Canary asked.

"Yeah," Cassius said. "I should have told you about my past before, but..." He sighed. "Anyway, I'll start with the Reach. They want to study the Meta-Gene some humans carry, and hope to weaponize it. It's a genetic marker in some humans that allows them to develop superpowers under conditions of extreme stress or trauma."

Canary nodded. "Based on what the others all told me, that's the conclusion I'd come to."

Cassius nodded. "It's also the same reason they had the Light experiment on me in my past, back when I still went by the hero name Copycat."

Canary's jaw actually dropped. "What?"

Cassius smirked knowingly. "I know. Not what you were expecting, right? In my past life, I was Copycat, bane of the League of Shadows' existence."

Canary stared at him for a few minutes before smiling and nodding. "So you really _were _a hero."

Cassius shook his head. "Heroes don't kill, but when I fought the League of Shadows, the reason I was the bane of their existence was that I only spared the grunts, who I could take down with one or two hits each. I didn't waste the energy trying to spare the Shadows higher ups. I just killed them."

Canary nodded. "So that's what you weren't proud of that you were considered a hero for."

Cassius nodded. "I spent years slaughtering their best, and they wanted me dead. But about the same time Lady Shiva captured me for...personal reasons, the Reach had asked the Light to capture a human with an active Meta-Gene to be studied. So, once Lady Shiva had finished having her fun, she took me to the island to be studied by Reach scientists and guarded by Shadows, and Deadshot. I don't remember the scientists being there because of the nature of the tests. They submerged me in a thick black fluid they called tar. It's thick and black, about like you'd expect, except that it's boiling and acidic. By the time it reached my knees, I was already in too much pain to think straight. In order to try and protect myself from the pain, I tried to use my Body Modification to transform my body into tar, except that I couldn't concentrate properly through the pain, and as I was shifting, I accidentally overexposed my cells to the tar, and I drew in some of the tar. As a result, the chemical reaction the tar causes with cells bearing a Meta-Gene, active or not, mutated my Meta-Gene, changed my powers, and I literally became tar with a consciousness. The process was extremely slow, and was excruciating. I was being broken down on a molecular level. It was the same level of pain as what the Reach did to me. I can't describe it, and I wouldn't want to even if I could, because I wouldn't wish it on anyone. Even Nemesis."

"Special hate for Nemesis?" Canary asked.

"He earned it," Cassius growled. "I'll get into that later." He took a long breath, refocusing his thoughts on his past. "The pain of being broken down on a molecular level wiped my memories. Ironically, feeling that same pain again restored them. Anyway, I doubt the Reach got what they wanted, or recognized me after they caught me this time. At the end of my...transformation, my sister found me, but got captured. I was able to...sense her, I guess. I didn't have a body at the time, but I knew she was there and needed my help, despite having come to save me. So I was able to ignore the pain of trying to use my Body Modification again, even without knowing what it was, and was able to form myself a body with a random appearance in order to break free and rescue her, but without memories, I didn't know her, and Deadshot killed her before she could tell me. David Cane and Lady Shiva found me and brought me into the Shadows."

"You said that lady Shiva captured you for personal reasons," Canary said. "Was it anything related to your Meta-Gene?"

"No," Cassius said. "When I was Copycat, she had an...obsession with me. The first time I fought her, I humiliated her by beating her in seconds, and she only managed to escape thanks to Slade-uh...Deathstroke-shooting me with a sniper rifle while she fled. I managed to shift into an alien species that is able to survive excessive amounts of physical damage without dying so that I survived, but both of them escaped. After that, Lady Shiva tracked me down about five or six times a month. Not all of them were to fight me, but even when she _was_ trying to fight me, she was also trying to seduce me. It was infuriatingly annoying, but she never gave up, and she always managed to escape before I could kill her, through one bullshit trick or another. I'm partially the reason she got so good at fighting and escaping capture. After she finally caught me, she spent weeks...enjoying her victory, before taking me to the island to be experimented on."

"I see," Canary said, glancing at Cassandra. "Just to be clear, is Cassandra-"

"Cain's," Cassius said. "She was born years after I became Void."

"How old _is_ Lady Shiva?" Dick asked.

"Fifties, maybe sixties," Cassius said. "As near as I can tell, she hit her late twenties and just stopped aging. I'm not sure how, but based on how many times I seriously wounded her, I have a feeling Lazarus Pits might be involved."

"It's possible," Dick nodded. "If Ra's al Ghul wanted to keep her around."

"Deathstroke has his own Lazarus Pit," Cassius said. "It's partly responsible for his own powers, and how he's lived so goddamn long."

"Partially?" Dick asked.

"He was also injected with an experimental serum," Rose said. "He told me it was made from Venom, water from the Lazarus Pit, and several other chemicals, including bits of Nemesis's DNA, but all of it broken down to its most basic form. He said the one he was injected with was imperfect, and it put him in a coma for months before he woke up with near-superhuman strength, speed, agility, reflexes, healing, and intelligence. He claimed he later perfected the serum, which he injected me with when I was young while I was in a Lazarus Pit. That's probably where my own abilities come from. Specifically the limited precognition, as well as my enhanced strength, agility, and healing. They're not on my father's level, but they're more stable than his, so I don't need to go into a Lazarus Pit once every few months to keep my body from breaking down."

"That would explain a bit," Dick said.

"So, what can you tell us about Nemesis?" Canary asked.

"He's an alien species from several galaxies away," Cassius said. "The Kryptonians tried to go to that galaxy several times in order to get a special type of mineral there that would make them immune to kryptonite, but Nemesis's species was able to hold them back, thanks to his helmet."

"What's special about it?" Canary asked.

"Well, it used to belong to the ruler of Nemesis's species, until he killed him and stole it," Cassius said. "It amplifies the wearer's power several times over, but Nemesis's evil intentions corrupted it. It sort of, absorbed all the darkness from his heart. Without it on, he's a timid, kind-hearted person, who's too afraid of his own power to be very strong. He was also a friend of mine as Copycat. With it on, however, he's a ruthless, evil being, with his power amplified by the helmet, and a desire to slaughter anyone the good side of his soul cares about, as well as cause the good side of his soul so much pain that he loses the strength to keep the dark side contained. In the past, the dark side killed everyone the good side cared about, except me. I was able to fight him, albeit not on equal ground, and managed to get the helmet off. Nemesis became the evil side's name because he was _the good side's_ nemesis, not mine. However, beating the evil side made him hate me as much as the good side, so he made me suffer without trying to fight me by raping both my wife and my sister. I hunted him down and beat him to within an inch of his life before taking the helmet off, and the good side wanted to commit suicide to stop the other. I stopped him and he locked the helmet away. I'm not sure how he ended up wearing it again, or why the evil side is in complete control now, but I assume we have the Light to thank for it."

"Probably," Dick said. "Nemesis is a powerful asset on their side, as long as they have you to aim him at."

"Would you like to talk in private about anything, Cassius?" Canary asked. "I'm willing to listen if you need to."

"No," Cassius said. "I'll be okay. Thank you, though."

Canary nodded, smiling, then stood. "I should go and tell the League what you've told me. Do you mind if I tell them who you are?"

"Go ahead," Cassius said. "As long as I don't have to deal with the initial reactions. I'm too tired for that. That's why I wanted to tell only you, since I knew you'd be able to take it in stride."

Canary nodded. "Get some rest, then."

Cassius nodded and she left, Dick standing.

"I gotta get back to the Team," Dick said.

"Where are we, anyway?" Cassius asked.

"Oh, you're on the Watchtower," Dick said. "With the Cave gone, it's the only place that had the equipment to treat you without having to try and explain to a civilian hospital why you were in the condition you were in, or why you healed faster than a normal human."

Cassius nodded. "Thanks."

Dick nodded and left, and Cassius lay back down with the girls, closing his eyes and allowing himself to drift off to sleep again.

* * *

Cassius sat on his bed and sighed, looking around. It felt good to be back in the Manor after having been stuck in the Watchtower's makeshift medical wing for so long. He looked around slowly at his bare room. The didn't have any spare clothes since he just made what he needed from his goo, he didn't have decorations because he usually was too busy being beaten bloody by Batman or else staying at the Cave to avoid him, and therefor had no time to enjoy decorations, so he never got them.

"You need anything?" Dick asked.

"Sleep," Cassius said. "Shit-tons of sleep."

Dick chuckled, nodding. "Alright. Get some rest. I'll keep the girls off missions until you're recovered."

Cassius sighed, smiling tiredly. "Dick, let's be honest here. You won't be able to get them out of the manor until after I'm healed."

Dick chuckled again. "True."

He raised a hand in farewell and left. Cassius retracted the goo making up his shoes and climbed into bed, yawning. A few seconds later, Cassandra and Rose joined him, Cassius smiling knowingly and wrapping his arms around them both, not bothering to open his eyes before beginning to drift off to sleep. After a while, he wasn't sure how long, he stirred as Cassandra tightened her arms around him and whimpering. He tightened his arm around her as well and she stirred, beginning to cry silently. he trailed his hand up and down her back silently as she cried, continuing to do so until she finally drifted off to sleep again. He sighed, closing his eyes and following her, memories of his life before, of being with his wife, plaguing his sleep.

* * *

Cassius set his freshly cleaned plate on the stack in the cupboard, closing it, and headed toward the bedrooms. Cassandra and Rose had gone to bed in their own rooms for the night, and both were sleeping soundly. He sighed, walking outside and spread his wings, grimacing against the pain of using his goo while still not healed. Then, he took off, flying to his family's grave. He landed at the edge of town, as always, and shifted into his old life's form, walking through town and getting some flowers, pushing money through the mail slot, as he always did when the shop was closed, then walked to the grave. He knelt down on it, staring at the names in silence for a few minutes.

"I finally remember," Cassius said. "I remember everything. It took me so long to remember. Wouldn't you know it, it took me being tortured until the brink of death for me to remember my life. Ironic, huh?" He fell silent for a few minutes, allowing his old memories to play behind his eyes. "I love you, Eveline. I'm so sorry for what I did. I wish I could take it back." He took a long, shaky breath. "You told me once that you'd be watching. I can't imagine it was very easy to see all of it, was it? I...I'm sorry. I...I won't be coming by anymore. It's time for me to let you rest." He smiled sadly as his tears began to fall. "I tried. I really did. But you knew, didn't you? That was why you gave me that message, right?"

He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked back, seeing Evaline standing behind him, one child in her arms and his sister beside her, holding the other. Both women smiled supportively, Eveline nodding mutely. He smiled as well, even as tears began to fall faster. He reached up, wiping his eyes, and when he opened them again, he was alone. He took a shaky breath and turned back to the grave, reaching out with a strand of goo, carving his sister's name on the grave as well. He wiped his eyes again and smiled.

"Goodbye Eveline, Jake, Cody, Amanda," Cassius said. "Have a good rest. I'll see you again someday."

He stood slowly and took a long, shaky breath before reforming his wings and turned, taking off again, flying back to Wayne Manor and walking into it. As he was heading for his room, Rose opened the door of hers, leaning on the doorway.

"Cassandra had another nightmare," Rose said. "They've been worse since we rescued you. Killing so many, as well as seeing you like that, really shook her up."

"I know," Cassius said. "Is she alright?"

"Tim's with her now," Rose said.

Cassius nodded. "I'll check on her before bed."

Rose nodded. "You went to the grave, right?"

"Yeah," Cassius said. "I wanted to say goodbye in person. I'm not going to visit anymore."

"Why?" Rose asked.

"I've held onto them for two lives already, and I'm the reason they're dead," Cassius said. "It's time for me to let them go."

Rose nodded. "Well, I'm going to go back to bed."

"Rose," Cassius said, making her look back at him. "Are you okay?"

Rose dropped her gaze to the floor for a moment. "Not really. But I will be. Now that you're okay, I'll be alright."

Cassius nodded and hugged her before letting her head back to bed. He walked to Cassandra's room, finding the door was still open. He looked in silently just as Tim leaned in, kissing Cassandra. She hesitated before beginning to kiss him back. Cassius smiled, eyes softening and itching. However, after a moment, Cassandra reached up, hands pressing against the front of Tim's shoulders. He pulled back immediately and Cassius backed away, heading to bed before they could see him. He climbed into bed in silence and lay on his back, eyes staring emptily at the ceiling. This was good. Tim would be good to her, and he was better for her. He rolled over, closing his eyes and letting out a slow breath, allowing himself to slip into his memories in place of dreams.

* * *

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	56. Chapter 56

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Downhill

Cassius narrowed his eyes as the newest ally explained about Lex Corp and the Reach's new energy drink, called Reach, and the additive it contained. The ally was a Martian named B'arzz O'oomm, who happened to be wearing green Beetle armor, and who claimed to have overpowered it thanks to it not being able to adjust to Martian physiology fast enough to stop him taking control of it instead. Cassius didn't trust it. The Reach was too advanced for it to have been that easy. However, Megan had mind-melded with him, albeit hesitantly, and B'arzz had "volunteered" his memories for her inspection, which Cassius also didn't trust. He could give false memories to a reluctant telepath too. He sighed. He needed to talk to Megan about what she'd obviously seen when she ripped Kaldur's mind apart.

Finally, the meeting was ended and they all began to head home for the night. Before Megan and La'gaan, who wanted to talk to her in private, could leave, Cassius set a hand on her shoulder.

"We need to talk," Cassius said. "About Aqualad."

Megan went rigid instantly, but nodded.

"What is there to talk about?" La'gaan asked. "She met him, she beat him, she made him pay for killing Artemis and betraying our king."

"La'gaan," Megan said, swallowing hard to keep from crying. "It won't take long. He's right. We need to talk."

"Fine," La'gaan growled. "I'll wait outside."

He walked away and Cassius led Megan to a room out of the way of the others, then sealed the door with what goo he could use without pain, then sighed heavily, turning back to her and holding his arms out. She stepped into him instantly, sobbing as he held her.

"I didn't know!" she sobbed.

"I know," Cassius said. "I know. It's not your fault."

"Yes it is!" Megan sobbed.

"No, it's not," Cassius said. "I tried to warn them that we needed to tell you so that this wouldn't happen. You didn't know what was going on, so it's not your fault."

"I shouldn't have done it!" Megan sobbed. "I never should have done it! Any of it!"

"No, you shouldn't," Cassius said. "And Connor and I both tried to tell you that it was wrong and you shouldn't do it, but that doesn't make Kaldur your fault," He pushed her back gently, making her look at him. "But Megan, you can't stop using your telepathy just because of this. You used it before without anyone being hurt, right? So you know how to do it."

Megan hesitated before nodding.

"There's a difference between punching and shaking someone's hand, right?" Cassius asked.

Megan nodded again.

"Your telepathy's the same," Cassius said. "You can attack with it, like you did the Kroloteans, or you can link your mind to someone else's, like you do the Team. You can brain blast someone to knock them out like you have dozens of times, or you can rip them apart. You control it. You don't need to be afraid of it."

Megan smiled slightly, nodding. "Yeah. Thanks."

He nodded, smiling. "Now, I believe La'gaan is waiting for you, and I need to get home before I pass out from exertion."

Megan nodded and Cassius reabsorbed his goo from the door, the two of them walking out to where La'gaan was waiting, and he and Megan left, Cassius heading for the nearest Zeta tube to head for the Batcave. A few minutes later, he walked up to the manor and headed for his room, passing the kitchen and seeing Tim and Cassandra working together to make an afternoon snack before bed. He headed to his room and locked the door behind himself, leaning back against it and letting out a slow breath grimacing as his head began to throb and spin. He hadn't thought he meant it so literally when he said he might pass out from exertion, but he felt like he might if he pushed off the door.

After a few seconds, the feeling began to pass and he pushed off the door, only for his mind to take a sharp right turn and send him crashing to the ground. He groaned, then curled into a ball deciding he'd just sleep there. It wasn't uncomfortable, and he was too tired and dizzy to care anyway. He sighed, closing his eyes and passing out almost instantly.

* * *

Cassius staggered into the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee, yawning and not realizing the cup was full until it overflowed onto his hand. He hissed in pain, rinsing his hand off before carefully lifting the cup and drinking some, then set it back down and got a wet paper towel, wiping off the outside of the cup before adding cream and sugar. As he was using a spoon to mix it in, Cassandra and Tim walked in, Cassandra getting a pair of cereal bowls and Tim grabbing the box and milk.

"Good morning," Cassandra signed, smiling.

"Good morning Cassy," Cassius smiled, hugging her, Cassandra hugging him back. "Did you sleep okay?"

"She hasn't slept okay since you were taken," Tim said. "When I woke her up from her nightmare last night, it took almost an hour for her to get back to sleep."

"I'm sorry," Cassius said. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

Cassandra shook her head. "Safe."

Cassius smiled, squeezing her for a second. "I'm going to go check in with Dick."

She nodded and pulled away and he left, meeting Rose and giving her a hug good morning on the way before reaching the Batcave and calling his wrist computer.

"Cassius?" Nightwing asked. "What's up?"

"I need a mission," Cassius said. "Anything. Please. I need something. I can't...I can't stay here much longer."

"What's wrong?" Nightwing asked.

"Dick, please," Cassius said.

Nightwing sighed. "Alright. There _is_ something. There's an object, a weapon called War World, slightly smaller than Earth's Moon, on its way to Earth. It just passed Saturn. How soon can you get to Star Labs Taos?"

"Already on the way," Cassius said. "Should I bring the others?"

"Yes," Nightwing said, then paused. "Are you trying to get away from them? Is that what this is about?"

Cassius hung up and sent an alert to Tim's watch computer. A couple minutes later, the others all reached the Batcave in their costumes. The four of the used the Zeta tube to go to Tao and then to where the others were gathering. Cassius sighed as he formed himself a goo throne and sat down heavily, looking around. Rose was standing off to one side with Barbara, and Cassandra was standing with Tim. Cassius's gaze fell to the floor. It had been a couple of weeks since she and Tim had kissed. He had tried to give them as much time to themselves as he could. She'd stayed with him more than half of the nights in the last couple of weeks, and her nightmares had been getting better. However, every night se didn't stay with him, she had worse nightmares, so he understood why Tim was under the impression she wasn't improving. Tim had asked her on a date only once since they'd saved Cassius, but she had turned him down, being too tired and worried to be willing to go.

"Are you three okay?" Barbara asked. "You seem to have been spending less time with each other recently. After what happened, I would have expected you three to be inseparable all over again."

Cassius quickly told her about seeing Cassandra and Tim kiss, and Barbara gasped.

"Cassius!" Barbara hissed. "What are you doing!? Why are you letting him try to steal her!?"

"Barbara, she's fourteen, and I'm old enough to be her grandfather," Cassius said. "Besides the fact that I'm an assassin, and I killed my wife and children. I'm the last person she should ever be with. I'd rather suffer allowing her to be with Tim than suffer allowing anything to happen to her because I was with her."

Barbara groaned irritatedly. "Oh my God! Cassius!"_  
_

"No, Barbara," Cassius said. "This isn't open for discussion."

"But you-"

"No, Barbara," Cassius repeated.

Finally, Arsenal, the real Roy Harper who had shaved his head and tried to assassinate Lex Luthor, only to let him live in exchange for a weaponized prosthetic arm, arrived, being the last one, and Nightwing began the briefing about War World and their mission. Doctor Fate would defend Earth with his magic, and Rocket would defend him with her force fields. While they did, Captain Atom, Captain Marvel, and Green Beetle would all assault War World directly in order to hold War World's commander, Mongol's attention. Then, Cassius, Cassandra, Rose, Arsenal, Wonder Girl, Mal, who had officially taken over as Guardian, Bumblebee, Beast Boy, Blue Beetle, Impulse, Connor, and Wolf would all sneak in. Once the briefing was over, they left, getting in exactly as planned, easier than Cassius expected.

"Scatter," Cassius said, having been placed in charge for the duration of the mission, though he was also Beta Squad with Cassandra and Rose.

Connor was Alpha with Wolf, Arsenal, and Wonder Girl, and were supposed to go and deal with Mongol. The other squads were all supposed to disable War World from the inside.

"Alpha Squad to Watchtower," Connor radioed. "Green Beetle's schematics are on the money. At least so far. We're enroute to take down Mongol. No commander, the threat ends."

"Beta Squad is enroute to the key chamber," Blue Beetle, who was teamed up with Impulse and Beast Boy, reported. "We snag the crystal key and the threat ends."

"Gamma Squad is enroute to disable the War World's power core," Bumblebee reported, being teamed with Mal, the two having taken Supercycle to be able to move faster. "No power and the threat ends."

"Delta Squad is enroute to the possible detention facility," Cassius said. "If anyone's captured, we'll break them out, along with freeing any prisoners already there."

"Epsilon Squad is in position," Barbara reported, she and Tim taking the Bio-Ship to lay covering fire on the surface. "Laying cover fire for the surface forces...now!"

Cassius slowed to a stop as a train-like object slid to a stop above them, the side of the cars opening and red diamond-shaped drones began to swarm out, firing yellow lasers at them. The three of them scattered instantly, beginning to smash them quickly, Cassandra wielding a sword with a jagged, curved liquid metal blade and Rose wielding two of them, the blades slashing through the drones easily.

"Where did you get those?" Cassius asked.

"We took them from Reach soldiers when we were rescuing you," Rose said.

"I see," Cassius nodded, grabbing a drone with a goo hand and smashing it into another. "They're useful. Do the blades change shape?"

"Haven't tried," Rose said.

"I can check after the mission, if you want," Cassius said, using goo to block a laser for Cassandra, grateful they weren't superheated plasma, then smashed the drone.

"Please," Cassandra said.

"Beta to Watchtower," Blue Beetle radioed. "We've been spotted! The War World knows we're here!"

"Join the club," Cassius said, sending a barrage of goo spikes through several drones before reabsorbing them as he smashed another into the wall.

"Fine with me!" Mal said. "I _like_ the attention! At least a big alien death moon notices when I'm around!"

Cassius winced in sympathy, hurling a drone into another. He'd heard about Mal's relationship trouble with Bumblebee. It wasn't that she didn't love Mal, she was just busy with her work, schooling, and being a hero. He spun, his goo arms stretching out and smashing the remaining drones, as well as the walls around them, and he retracted them, the three beginning to run again, Cassandra retrieving any batarangs she'd thrown.

"Alpha's...down," Connor muttered, sounding barely conscious.

"We'll get them," Cassius said.

"If he doesn't kill them," Tim said.

"Relax," Cassius said as they reached the detention center's door, seeing dozens of cells, all with red energy fields, and all empty. "Detention center's clear. Heading up to the control room directly above us."

"Hurry," Nightwing said.

"Chill, boss," Cassius said, focusing and forming his muscles themselves into super-compressed goo muscles. "Now that I remember everything, I've got this."

He jumped, streaking up at the ceiling of the detention area and punching the ceiling, exploding through it and reaching the control room directly in front of Mongol. He flipped, slamming a kick into his jaw and hurled him out of the throne, sending him crashing into the wall just as Alpha began to stand. Mongol pushed himself up and Cassius shot forward, jumping and drilling a fist into the underside of Mongol's jaw, rocking him back into the wall before extending goo legs to raise himself to Mongol's face, drilling several punches into his face before using his forearms to block a punch from Mongol, streaking across the room and crashing into the wall.

"Yup, that hurt," Cassius said as his forearm bones snapped and cracked as they healed. "Back to using technique."

Just then, the circuit lines running along the ceiling, walls, and floor began to glow yellow from the top down, reaching the throne before it and the headpiece Mongol was wearing both shone, electricity screaming over Mongol's body, making him shout in pain before staggering forward.

"Hit him!" Connor shouted, streaking forward and jumping, drilling a punch into the much larger alien's jaw, sending him staggering backward.

As he stopped, Arsenal blasted him in the gut with a small rocket, then flipped over him, blasting him several more times. Then, as Mongol staggered out of the smoke, Cassius and Wonder Girl shot forward, drilling their fists into his face and sending him blasting across the room to the wall. Mongol dropped and Wonder Girl bound him with her rope instantly. Cassius walked over, pulling the controlling headpiece, a frame with two sensors on the sides, off of Mongol's head and smirked.

"I'll be holding onto this," Cassius said.

"All surface weapons have been silenced," Captain Atom said. "Is it over?"

"Mongol is down and contained," Connor said.

"Nice work Alpha," Barbara said.

"I'd love to take credit, but _we_ didn't do it," Connor said. "His own machines stung him. I'm guessing with a little help."

"I'm heading back to the rest of Delta," Cassius said.

The others nodded and Cassius dropped back through the hole he'd made, landing beside Cassandra and Rose, who both smiled up at him.

"I'll just take this for safe keeping," Blue Beetle said, likely meaning the crystal key, as the lights around them and the barriers forming the walls of the cells around them all fading.

"You two did great," Cassius smiled, both girls also smiling and hugging him.

"Well done, everyone," Nightwing said. "Now rendezvous ASAP so we can bring you home."

They all headed back to where they'd infiltrated, Cassius absorbing the control helmet into his body as they walked in order to hide it. As they arrived, the found all the others were present besides Alpha Squad.

"There you guys are," Mal said. "Where's Alpha?"

"Trudging along with the big-bad," Arsenal complained. "He must weigh like a metric ton. We're just a couple minutes out."

"Glad to see you're okay," Tim smiled as he walked over to them.

"You too," Cassandra signed.

Tim smiled and kissed her on the cheek, before taking her hand. "Any trouble?"

Cassandra shook her head.

"We just met a few drones," Rose said. "Nothing major. Cassius got a powerup, though."

"Comes with remembering how my original powers worked and using my goo to fake it," Cassius shrugged. "I'll have to practice to see how close to my original powers I can get."

"What original powers?" Blue Beetle asked.

Cassius smiled and held a finger to his lips. "Trade secret." His arm snapped up, a goo fist exploding into Beetle's face, sending him exploding into the wall where Cassius pinned him entirely with goo. "Green Beetle's a Reach spy! Take him down now!"

And then, there was chaos. Even from inside of War World, they could hear the League battling Green Beetle, and several shouts of pain went over the comms from the League members. At the same time, Blue Beetle's chest formed into a sonic cannon, which Rose tackled Cassius out of the way of the initial blast from. The cannon freed Blue Beetle and knocked out most of the others, including Impulse. Cassandra hurled a batarang at Beetle, but he formed his right arm into a plasma cannon, blasting it out of the air as his left arm became a sonic cannon, the cannon in his chest shifting into a flame thrower, which roared to life as it sent a jet of blue-hot flames at Cassius, who swore harshly, fleeing from both soundwaves and flames. Blue Beetle took off suddenly, using a jetpack from his scarab and retracting the flamethrower on his chest. he crashed into Connor, throwing him, then flipped Mongol onto Wonder Girl, pinning her before stapling her arms to the ground. He turned just in time to form his right arm into a jagged, insect-leg-like blade and block Cassandra's blunt wakizashi, then blasted her with his sonic cannon, throwing her backward and knocking her out. Cassius shot forward, Beetle turning to blast him, only for several live bullets to slam into the side of his cannon, knocking it aside and allowing Cassius to reach him, slamming a goo fist into his face, his goo muscles still enhancing his strength, and sent him exploding through the wall.

"Arsenal, no!" Bumblebee shouted suddenly.

Cassius spun, seeing him standing in front of an airlock.

"I will not be taken again!" Arsenal snarled, slamming a fist into the airlock's controls and opening it, Sphere being sucked out of it instantly.

Cassius grabbed Rose, attaching several goo strands to the floor to hold them in place. After a moment, Blue Beetle slashed the controls, shutting the airlock before blasting everyone still in the room with his sonic cannon, Cassius shrieking in agony as he was hit and crashing to the ground, clutching at his sides, everyone ese unconscious, besides Connor and Arsenal, who put a rebreather in his mouth.

"Why?" Connor asked.

"Don't waste the oxygen, hermano," Beetle said. "There's _very_ little left in here."

Arsenal sent out his hand as a grappling cable and began to pull himself up to a tunnel to escape. Beetle turned and fired a staple at him, but Connor leapt into the staple's path, being hurled into the wall by it but giving Arsenal the chance to escape. Beetle huffed and walked over to Cassius, slamming a foot down on his head and knocking him out.

* * *

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	57. Chapter 57

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Distance

Cassius groaned as he began to stir, his entire body throbbing instantly. He opened his eyes, looking around the room and finding himself inside one of the cells of the War World's detention area. Cassandra and Rose were kneeling at his sides, Cassandra holding him, and the rest of the Team that had been captured was leaving whatever cells they were in. Cassius grit his teeth, pushing himself up, then picked up the girls and dropped, landing on his feet and setting them on their own feet as well just as Tim ran over with the two girls' gear. They ran to the door where the others were gathering, minus Mongol, who was battling Black Beetle.

"There's a squad of Reach Soldiers waiting for us," Arsenal warned.

He pressed the button to open the door, but as it rose, they found the Reach soldiers unconscious, and Nightwing and Megan standing behind the group of unconscious troops with Supercycle.

"Megan!" Cassius grinned. "You're back! How was your field trip? Everything go okay?"

"Better than expected, as far as kidnappings go," Megan said.

"Hey Fearless Leader," Arsenal smirked at Nightwing. "Better late than never."

"Everyone safe?" Nightwing asked.

"For now," Arsenal said.

"The crystal key?" Nightwing asked.

"Gone," Arsenal said just as Mongol flew past behind them, Black Beetle chasing him. "And we'd better get gone too, before one of them declares a winner!"

"Don't worry about the key," Cassius said. "I've got the steering wheel. Now let's go."

Nightwing nodded and they turned, guiding everyone back through the War World to the Bio-Ship. As they ran, breathing began to grow harder and harder for Cassius before he stumbled and fell. Cassandra and Rose were at his sides in an instant, taking his arms over their shoulders and lifting him, continuing to move, walking now, as the entire group had slowed for him. After a few more minutes, they reached the Bio-Ship again and they put him in his seat before taking their own.

_"Are you okay?"_ Megan asked Cassius telepathically.

_"Blue Beetle's under Reach control and hit me with a sonic cannon,"_ Cassius said. _"I'll be okay, though."_

_"I didn't mean physically,"_ Megan said. _"I can sense your emotions even without a connection."_

Cassius sighed and showed her the memory of Cassandra and Tim kissing and Megan gasped harshly, drawing several people's attention but ignoring them, instead turning Cassius's chair toward her with telepathy as she glared at him.

_"What are you doing, Cassius!?" _Megan demanded. _"How can you justify allowing this to happen?"_

_"What, allowing her to be with someone who'll be good to her and good_ for_ her? You're right, how can I live with myself?"_

Megan waved a hand, and her telekinesis impacted with his cheek like an invisible hand, turning his head to the side.

"Did you just slap me with telekinesis?" Cassius asked. "Impressive."

"Your fault for being an idiot," Megan said. _"What the hell, Cassius! What's wrong with you? Are you seriously going to just let him take her!?"_

_"Yes, Megan, I am," _Cassius said. _"He's better for her."_

_"How!?" _Megan demanded.

_"I'm an assassin who killed his own wife and children without batting an eyelash, he's a hero," _Cassius said. _"Cassandra's fourteen, and I'm old enough to be her grandfather while Tim is her age. I have Nemesis gunning for me and everyone close to me, and Tim has no arch enemy__."_

_"You can protect her from Nemesis, no one cares that you _used to be_ an assassin, and you can't use killing your family as an excuse because you didn't know them at the time!"_ Megan said. _"And you and I both know that age doesn't matter for you any more than me."_

_"Age most definitely _does_ matter when she's _fourteen_,__ Megan," _Cassius argued.

_"Don't even start, Cassius!" _Megan snapped. _"You and I both know that both of them are adults mentally."_

"Let's go," Nightwing said as he and Bumblebee walked in alone. "The others left with a boom tube, courtesy of a Fatherbox."

"Lovely," Connor grumbled.

_"We're not done this conversation,"_ Megan said before piloting the Bio-Ship away from the War World.

They flew in silence, and once they'd returned to the Blüdhaven location, Nightwing showed everyone a news report of Blue Beetle, now the Reach's poster boy hero. No one was happy, but Impulse argued that Beetle was as much a Reach prisoner as they had been, and that they needed to save him. After a few more minutes, they were all dismissed and Megan instantly grabbed Cassius with telekinesis and flew high into the air before turning to glare at him.

"You _can't_ let him take her, Cassius," Megan said. "She's in love with _you_!"

"Feelings change," Cassius said.

"But you can't let them!" Megan said. "There's no reason to!"

"We just went over this," Cassius said. "There are plenty of reasons."

"No valid ones!" Megan argued. "Besides, it should be her choice!"

"It is," Cassius said. "I'm just not an option."

Megan shouted in irritation. "You're impossible!"

"It's for the best," Cassius said.

Megan stared at him in silence for a moment before shaking her head. "Whatever. Make yourself miserable. I can ignore you."

She floated them both to the ground again and released him. He turned, walking away from her and toward the nearest Zeta tube, taking it to the Batcave. As he arrived, Dick was just pulling on Batman's gloves.

"That time again?" Cassius asked.

"For me," Dick said.

Cassius glanced past Dick to where Cassandra was talking to Tim. Cassius shifted his inner ears into that of an alien able to hear several times better than a human.

"-see a movie or get something to eat?" Tim was asking.

"We could do that here," Cassandra signed. "I really like Alfred's cooking.

"Well, yes, but I meant as a date," Tim said.

"I don't know," Cassandra signed. "Cassius isn't doing well again. You know how bad sonic attacks are for him."

"He'll be fine," Tim said. "He has Rose to look after him. And he'll be back to normal in about three days anyway."

"I don't know," Cassandra signed again. "I don't want to leave him, even if it's with Rose."

"You like him, don't you?" Tim asked.

"I love him," Cassandra signed.

"And what about me?" Tim asked.

"I care about you too," Cassandra signed.

Tim nodded, then sighed. "You _do _know he won't return your feelings, right?"

"I know," Cassandra signed. "That doesn't matter to me."

Tim sighed. "Okay. Can we...maybe go once he's recovered?"

Cassandra hesitated before signing, "Sure."

Tim nodded and thanked her, then headed upstairs as Cassius allowed his hearing to return to normal, sighing as he began to make his way up to his room. He sat down heavily on the bed and a few moments later, the door opened as Cassandra and Rose walked in, both sitting beside him.

"How do you feel?" Rose asked.

"I've been better," Cassius said. "I've been worse. It was only a short blast this time, so it shouldn't take me long to recover."

"We'll take care of you until then," Cassandra signed.

Cassius smiled before holding out his hand and extending the two moonstones he'd finally finished, both of them now on a black rope bracelet. Both girls gasped, taking one, then looked back and forth between it and him several times.

"I meant to have them ready in time for your birthdays, but I underestimated how long they'd take to complete, and then I got sent to the Reach before I could finish them," Cassius said. "Sorry. Do you like them?"

"They're amazing!" Rose said.

"Beautiful!" Cassandra agreed. "Thank you!"

Both girls hugged him and Cassius smiled, returning it happily. After a few seconds, both pulled away, putting the bracelets on. As they did, Cassius retracted his shoes and shifted his armor into pajamas, yawning and climbing into bed. Both girls stood and changed into pajamas as well, then joined him in the bed. Cassius wrapped his arms around them and they cuddled into him, all three quickly drifting off to sleep.

* * *

Cassius ducked under Dick's kick, drilling his fist into his back and sending him stumbling away. Dick turned, only to receive a windmill kick to the jaw, dropping on the spot. Cassius sighed, kneeling and lightly slapping Dick's cheek until he woke up.

"You know, you could hold back just a little," Dick said.

"You and I both know that you could keep up if you weren't thinking about a certain ginger so much," Cassius said.

"Can you blame me?" Dick asked as Cassius pulled him to his feet.

"As a male, no," Cassius said. "As me, yes."

Dick rolled his eyes. "You trying to tell me you haven't thought about you know who?"

"Well, unlike you, some of us are able to go more than a day without thinking about sex," Cassius said.

"Not humanly possible," Dick said.

"Well, coincidentally, I'm not human," Cassius said. "Remember? I'm living goo."

Dick rolled his eyes just as the Zeta tube activated, and Tim and Cassandra reappeared from their date, hands still linked. "Just in time, you two. Training."

Cassandra nodded, taking her hand back instantly and walking over, Dick leading her away from Cassius, flashing Dick a knowing grin.

"Go easy on him," Dick said.

Tim walked over, preparing himself to fight Cassius, who looked after Dick and Cassandra as Cassandra began to quickly force Nightwing into the defensive in their own sparring circle.

"Ready when you are," Tim said.

"Yeah," Cassius sighed, turning to him. "Sparring. Fun. Ready on you."

"You okay?" Tim asked.

"Great," Cassius said. "You going to attack, or-"

Tim jumped and spun away, throwing an aerial windmill kick at Cassius, which he stepped backward out of range of, then drilled a punch into Tim's gut, hurling him backward out of the ring. Tim rolled backward to his feet and charged again, extending his staff this time. Cassius avoided swipe after swipe before flipping over the staff and slamming a kick into Tim's jaw, hurling him away. He pushed himself up and charged again, only for Cassius to duck under a swipe of his staff and spin, swiping his feet out from under him, then grab his arm and hurl him.

"You have to do better, Tim," Cassius said. "Not good enough."

"Yeah, I'm hearing that a lot, lately," Tim said.

Cassius raised an eyebrow as Tim stepped back into the ring. "Date not go as good as you'd hope?"

"Are you kidding?" Tim asked, swiping at him rapidly. "All she wanted to talk about was you. How worried she was when you were with the Reach, how badly hurt you were, how much she misses sleeping with you because she doesn't have nightmares with you, how many times you've locked your door when you go to bed or gone to bed long after she's already asleep!" he spun, throwing a windmill kick and making him duck, only to crack him across the jaw with his staff a moment later. "You wouldn't believe how many times I've had to hear about how she feels like you've been trying to shut her out!"

He jabbed the end of his staff at Cassius, so he swept it to the side and caught it, then immediately jabbed it back at Tim, slamming it into his chest and throwing him to the ground before holding it to his throat.

"That was better," Cassius said. "But you overcommitted. As for me shutting her out, you ever stop to think about why?"

Tim frowned for a moment before setting his head back on the floor. "You're trying to give me a chance."

"I'm trying to get her to choose you," Cassius said. "You'd be better for her. For a number of reasons."

Tim sighed, gripping the staff and allowing Cassius to lift him to his feet. "Thank you for trying, but...I don't think she'll choose me. She's hurt that you're pushing her away."

"It's better she get hurt now and choose you than that she choose me and suffer because I'm me," Cassius said.

"You're a special kind of stupid," Tim said, taking his staff back. "You're one of the smartest in Batman Inc., and yet you're completely clueless about the two girls who mean more to you than anything. You've been shutting them both out for weeks, condemning both to nightmares, even though Rose won't say anything about it, and yet both of them are still completely in love with you and refuse to believe you can do anything wrong. They have horrible nightmares every night and can't rest, and yet they're both worried about _your_ wellbeing. Not their own." He sighed heavily. "I want an answer here and now. If I ask her to be mine, will you let her go?"

"If you ask her to be yours, and she agrees, she's yours," Cassius said. "But it has to be her choice."

"It will," Tim said. "Thank you."

"Tim, you know what she's going to choose if you give her the choice now, don't you?" Cassius asked.

Tim stared at the ground for a moment before sighing and looking back to Cassius. "You know, I'm a little jealous of your two lifetimes of combat training."

"Don't be," Cassius said. "It's useful, but it comes with the price of everyone you knew in your past life being gone."

Tim nodded. "You know, I'm pretty sure everyone neglected to tell you the most important thing about Cassandra and Rose."

"What's that?" Cassius asked.

"No matter how much they need you, I'm pretty sure what's more important is that you need them more," Tim said. "They keep you grounded, and they give you a reason to keep living."

Cassius sighed, smiling in spite of himself. "Yeah, maybe. But she'd still be better off with you."

Tim nodded and retracted his staff, putting it away. He raised a hand as he walked away, and Cassius sighed, walking over to the Batcave's computer, picking up the three liquid metal swords. He studied the hilts for a moment. The hilts were all rounded and similar to Japanese-style hilts, with one round white pressure switch to extend the blade, several seams along the sides, and nothing else. He used a scanner on the computer to see how it was programmed, and if he could adjust it without taking it apart. The computer came up empty, so he sighed, taking the hilts and headed up to his room, reaching over to lock the door but stopped. Tim's words returned to him and he sighed, walking over to the bed without locking the door. He set the hilts on the nightstand and shifted his clothes into pajamas, climbing into bed. He lay in silence for a long while, staring at the ceiling, lost in his thoughts. His chest constricted as he lay there but he remained silent and still. Finally, his head rolled toward the door as he saw a shadow move over to it and stop. He waited, but after a moment, whoever it was left. He sighed heavily, rolling away from the door and closing his eyes, only to remain awake until his alarm went off in the morning. He shut it off and stood, shifting his pajamas into a pair of shorts and a muscle shirt, leaving the manor to go for a run, as he always did in the mornings when he was at the manor.

* * *

Cassius sat on the low stone wall overlooking one of the Wayne Manor's gardens, taking a long pull from his cigarette, holding it for a long few seconds before exhaling, not even letting out any smoke as he did. He stared at the smoldering ashes on the end of the cigarette. He had never smoked, never thought he'd even want to. And yet, here he was, half a pack down in the last twenty minutes and his hand still trembled. It had been days since he'd told Tim to his face that he had permission to take Cassandra. He didn't regret it. He didn't. And yet, in the days since he had, he hadn't locked his door once, had left it open several times, and not once had he seen Cassandra or Rose after dinner. He sighed, finishing his cigarette before standing just as Dick set a hand on his shoulder.

"Mind if I take one?" Dick asked.

He smiled, handing him one just as Megan landed beside them as well, also taking one. He chuckled, taking another for himself, Dick lighting all three for them before they all sat down in silence.

"Tim talked to me about what happened," Dick said. "I'd ask how you are but I can take a guess from the ashtray."

"I'm okay with it," Cassius said.

Neither responded and Cassius took a drag from his cigarette, once again holding it until there was no smoke to exhale.

"I haven't seen them after dinner since," Cassius said.

"I know," Dick said. "They've been going on patrols with me. They both said they needed time to think."

Cassius nodded, taking another pull. "I messed up, didn't I?"

"Which time?" Megan asked.

Cassius snorted humorlessly, nodding. "That's fair." He swallowed hard, eyes watering. "I tried. I...I really did."

"It's proof you're still human," Megan said. "There are some things you can't help and can't change no matter how hard you work to deny it."

Cassius nodded. "I need a mission. I need..." He held the cigarette to his lips, inhaling until the last half of his cigarette had burned away before putting it in the ash tray before exhaling. "I need something. Anything."

"We're trying to find a way to help Blue Beetle," Dick said. "In the mean time, if you don't mind staying in Gotham, you could track down Cluemaster. He's been robbing jewelry stores, but he, or someone else, has been leaving clues."

"I'll get him," Cassius said. "Like I said. Anything." He stood, taking a deep breath and looking up at the slowly darkening sky. "Is the file on the computer?"

"Yeah," Dick said.

He nodded and turned to walk to the cave, pulling up the file on Cluemaster's most recent crimes, and within minutes, he had decided on two possible targets for the night. He headed out into Gotham, creating a clone to cover one while he covered the other. After a few hours of waiting, Cluemaster arrived, looking around carefully before heading for the store. He wore a long-sleeved red shirt and pants, yellow gloves, yellow boots, a yellow mask over his lower face similar to Cassius's, a black bulletproof vest, and had blond hair in a ponytail reaching the middle of his shoulder blades. He had a revolver holstered on his right hip, and he got into the store without setting off an alarm, with Cassius was fairly impressed with, given that he wasn't a very successful criminal. However, before Cassius could move in, someone scrambled over the edge of the building from the fire escape. He turned, raising an eyebrow at the girl. She had a black turtleneck sweater, black sweatpants, a purple cape with a hood, and a black cloth mask over the bottom half of her face. A lock of blonde hair peeked out her hood, and when she saw him, her eyes went wide and she turned to run, only for his clone to land in front of her and catch her by the upper arms.

"It must be so uncomfortable to run in a sweater," Cassius said, walking over and retracting his mask's goo. "Stephanie, right? Stephanie Brown?"

She turned, eyes widening still further before relief shone from them. "You scared me!"

"Sorry," Cassius said. "I'm going to assume you've been leaving the clues to try and spoil your father's fun."

"How'd you know..." she trailed off.

"I work for Batman," Cassius said. "We all basically think we know everything. I'll stop your father. My clone will keep you company, and then we'll talk after. I still need to thank you properly for saving me."

She nodded and Cassius dropped to the roof of the jewelry store, transforming into goo to slip in through the ventilation shaft before reforming as he fell directly onto Cluemaster, knocking him out instantly. He cuffed him and tripped a sensor to summon the cops before walking out the front door and dropping Cluemaster in the street, returning to the roof and reabsorbing his clone just as several cop cars screeched to a stop, the police quickly arresting Cluemaster.

"So, why'd you help them rescue me?" Cassius asked.

"You needed help," Stephanie shrugged. "They risked their lives to save us, so I couldn't let you stay a prisoner, and definitely die. I wouldn't have been able to live with myself. how are you?"

"I'm better," Cassius said. "Took a while, but I recovered. I wish I could say I'm okay, but...Well, anyway. What do you want to do? Do you want to go back to being a normal teen? Or do you like the life now that you've gotten a taste?"

Stephanie smiled knowingly behind her mask. "I'll admit it's kind of fun."

Cassius nodded. "I figured you'd say that. How's your mother?"

"She's...difficult," Stephanie said. "She got mad at me for trying to stop him, and did nothing to do it herself."

Cassius nodded, raising a hand to his communicator. "Nightwing, mind coming to meet me? I think I found a potential new asset."

"Be there in fifteen," Nightwing said.

Cassius sat down, extending a carton of cigarettes from his left hand, pulling one out and putting it in his mouth, taking the lighter from the carton and lighting it before putting it away and taking a long pull before exhaling slowly.

"You smoke?" Stephanie asked.

"Recent development," Cassius said. "Supposed to help with my stress, but it hasn't helped yet. Better than drinking, though."

Stephanie nodded, sitting down on an exposed ventilation system across from him as they waited. Fifteen minutes on the dot later, Nightwing swung up onto the roof and landed on his feet, raising an eyebrow at Cassius, who had his mask off and five cigarette butts on the roof in front of him.

"Nightwing, meet Stephanie Brown," Cassius introduced them, putting his current cigarette out and standing, stepping on the butts and absorbing them into his foot. "She was the one leaving clues to ruin Cluemaster's plans. She's also the one who helped Orphan and Ravager save me from the Reach."

"I see," Nightwing nodded. "So, you want to be a hero?"

"I'm not really sure," Stephanie said. "It felt good to stop my father. And I'd like to think I could make a difference by stopping others."

Nightwing nodded. "You know how to fight?"

"Not really," Stephanie said.

"Got a hero name in mind?" Nightwing asked.

Stephanie thought for a moment before answering. "Spoiler."

Nightwing smiled and nodded. "Alright. We can't bring you back with us to the Bat Clan, at least not without Batman's permission, but we can begin training you. Not here, and not now, but in a couple days a few of us could meet up with you somewhere."

Stephanie smiled and nodded. "Please."

Nightwing nodded. "Alright. Head home. We'll let you know when and where."

"Don't you need to know where I live, or what my phone number is?" Stephanie asked.

"Do you know who we are?" Cassius chuckled. "We already know all of that. Like I said. We know everything."

She nodded and stood. "I suppose I should head home, then."

Nightwing nodded. "Would you like Void to give you a lift?"

"If you don't mind," Stephanie said.

"Not at all," Cassius said, forming her a goo chair to sit in. "All aboard."

She walked over and sat down and he formed her a goo seatbelt before forming a pair of wings and taking off. He dropped her off in front of her house before heading back to the Batcave, then to bed for another sleepless night alone.

* * *

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	58. Chapter 58

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Crashing the Mode

"He's here," Cassius said, watching as Blue Beetle flew down toward El Paso.

"Take him," Nightwing ordered.

Cassius nodded to Impulse and sent a goo hand up to catch Beetle around the legs. He began to turn, only for Impulse to reach him, disabling his thruster pack and allowing Cassius to whip Beetle into the ground. Impulse ran down the side of a building to the street and Cassius dropped into the street as Batgirl stepped out of a back alley and tossed a small sleeping gas grenade onto the ground in front of Beetle. Batgirl took a step forward and a pair of staples slammed into her, pinning her to a tree. Impulse slammed into Beetle, hurling him at Cassius, who drilled a goo-covered fist into him, sending him exploding into the wall. He raised a sonic cannon, but Impulse slammed into his arm, shattering the cannon before shooting the other way and slamming a punch into him, flipping him end over end to the ground. He spun instantly, firing a single staple and pinning Impulse to a wall, only for Cassius to fling an electrified bolo at Beetle, wrapping it around him and electrocuting him for several seconds before he collapsed. Then, he stood again, breaking free just as Cassius slammed a punch into his jaw, then another, and another. He spun out of the way of a sonic blast and slashed the scarab on Beetle's back with a goo wakizashi before spinning the other way and slamming a punch into his chest, sending him crashing into the wall.

Beetle stood instantly, only for Rocket to form a barrier around him. He slammed a ball of metal into it several times before forming a sonic cannon, just in time for Zatanna to cast a spell on the force field, ricocheting his sonic blast at him over and over. It didn't hurt him, but it stopped him from breaking the shield. Cassius stepped forward, stopping in front of him and watching him calmly.

"I should thank you, Ambassador," Cassius said. "Thanks to you giving us a chance to take Beetle, you've given me a decent distraction. I'll be sure to thank you in person, once we free Jaime and his Scarab both from your control."

Zatanna used a second spell to free Impulse and Batgirl and Cassius extended his go, wrapping it around the force field and lifting it.

"Shall we, ladies?" Cassius asked.

"Let's," they said as Supercycle landed off to the side.

Cassius formed himself a set of wings and flew into the air, the others following in Supercycle.

"Enjoy your advantage while you can," Beetle said. "The Reach track my every move, and when they get done there won't be enough left for a DNA identification!"

"Ambassador, if you're going to make Beetle repeat everything you say in to your microphone, you should probably learn to speak in less scientific terms," Cassius said. "Your threats are just demeaning to yourself, and are probably giving Jaime something to laugh at while he waits for us to fix him."

"Tell me our destination and I'll make your deaths painless!" Beetle ordered.

"Oh, that's easy," Cassius said. "We're taking you to a strip club. The way I figure it, you'd probably be a lot more cheerful if you got to see a set of tits for the first time in your life."

"You dare to mock me!?" Beetle demanded.

"What are you going to do about it?" Cassius asked. "Threaten me about carbon dating?"

After a few hours, they reached Bialya and blasted their way into Queen Bee's hidden abductee hangar. Soldiers readied themselves for a fight instantly and Zatanna took their guns before Impulse began to knock them out, only to crash into Devastation, the massive female criminal with black, thorned, vine tattoos on her left arm and the left side of her face. Impulse bounced off harmlessly before she caught him by the ankle.

"You got Blue, Rocket?"

"Got him," Rocket nodded.

Cassius took his goo back from the sphere and shot forward, coating his right fist in goo as he formed goo muscles again as he had against Mongol, and drilled a fist into her face, launching her away and freeing Impulse.

"Impulse, grunts," Cassius said. "The big guns are mine."

Impulse nodded and took off as Devastation began to stand, only for Cassius to slam a fist into her head knocking her out. Just as he did, Mammoth crashed into the side of the Supercycle. Cassius spun, launching himself forward and crashing into his side with both fists, sending him bouncing and crashing back along the runway toward where they'd entered. He pushed himself up, roaring, and Cassius charged instantly. Mammoth pulled a fist back just as Cassius's leg armor formed into digitigrade goo legs, doubling his speed and allowing him to slam a punch into Mammoth's face before he could react, sending him tearing along the runway and out through the exit. Cassius spun just as Batgirl kicked Shimmer into a hole Shimmer had made with her new Reach-given power to melt whatever she touched, then tossed in a polyurethane grenade to seal her in.

"You sure that won't suffocate her?" Cassius asked.

"I'm sure," Batgirl said.

"Okay then," Cassius shrugged. "No big loss if it does anyway."

"Come on," Batgirl said. "Let's get to work."

They walked to an area with an obelisk in the center of an eight-pointed star with a scarab decorating a broken wall off to one side.

"Here," Zatanna said.

"You, uh, sure you got the power for this?" Impulse asked.

"Me?" Zatanna asked. "No. But I'll summon it from those who do."

"Summon quickly," Cassius said. "Green Beetle will be here soon. Possibly with Black Beetle."

"Oh, joy," Impulse groaned. "Him again."

Zatanna began to chant, her hair and clothes blowing as if in a strong breeze. She began to float into the air, adopting a lotus pose, and Cassius turned to wait for the other two Beetles to arrive. Just as he did, Green arrived, shifting his arm into a jagged blade.

"They all die now!" Green Beetle said, flying forward, only for Cassius to form a pair of goo wakizashi and streak forward to meet him.

Their blades crashed several times rapidly before Cassius flipped into the air over a slash and slammed a kick into his head, smashing him into the ground before impulse grabbed Cassius and ran him away from Green Beetle before returning just as Batgirl's firebomb exploded, Impulse quickly running around the flames to turn it ito a ring around green Beetle.

"Ha!" Impulse laughed as he skidded to a stop beside Batgirl again. "Those Martians really can't take the heat."

"No," Batgirl agreed. "But stay alert. He has other skills to compensate."

Just then, Green Beetle rose from the floor behind the pair and raised a sonic cannon as he turned physical again, only for Cassius's combined goo hands to slam down on his back as a massive mallet bigger than Green Beetle's entire body. He retracted the arms and shot forward just as Green Beetle began to stand drilling one of his two right fists into the Beetle's back, sending him flying at Impulse, who crashed into him at max speed, sending him flying backward into Cassius's other right punch, which sent him exploding into the wall off to the side. However, the goo strand now attached to Green Beetle's chest snapped back toward Cassius instantly and brought the beetle with it, allowing Cassius to once again smash a massive goo mallet down on top of him.

He stood almost instantly, only for a small green lizard to land on his head then expand into an elephant, pinning him to the ground. Cassius slammed a football kick into Green Beetle's head and he went limp beneath Beast Boy. Then, his eyes shone red and Beast Boy crashed into Cassius, only for Bumblebee to appear in front of Green Beetle and sting him in the eyes. A moment later, Wonder Girl caught him with her lasso and held him still just in time for Tim and Cassandra to slam a pair of dropkicks into his head hurling him to the ground. Green Beetle blasted Wonder Girl and Bumblebee with a sonic cannon, hurling both, and swept it around to Beast Boy, who was able to resist. Then, Rose hurled three electric bolos at Green Beetle, who shouted in pain as he was electrocuted.

"Uh, Z, we're on the clock here," Rocket said.

"Chill, Rocket," Cassius said, punching Green Beetle down into the ground as he began to stand again. "We've got this. The Ambassador's remote controlling them. He's not a warrior, and he's definitely no Black Beetle. This is nothing."

Zatanna began to chant again, eyes shining white, and a small stone scarab began to glow at the top of the obelisk before breaking free and flying to Zatanna's forehead, sticking there. A moment later, a massive, spectral, shining, blue silhouette of an ancient Egyptian queen, or maybe goddess, formed behind her. Zatanna and the silhouette chanted together and stones began to float up from the ground as it began to shake. Green Beetle spun, stabbing Cassius, only for Cassius to smirk, smashing the blade with his fist before punching Green Beetle down into the ground again and pulling the blade out, his body filling in instantly.

"Good try," Cassius said.

All around them, the ruin began to piece itself back together rapidly and Green Beetle began to look around in confusion and shock. As it finished it formed a massive beetle carving behind Zatanna, which began to turn blue instantly. Then, the shrine began to shine the hieroglyphs on the reconstructed pillars around them shining white, and Zatanna told Rocket to let Beetle out, in backward words.

Rocket released Blue Beetle and flew away as Cassius leapt away from Green Beetle.

"Fools!" Blue Beetle shouted, forming a plasma cannon.

"You will all..." Green Beetle said, also forming one, both beetles turning to Zatanna.

"Die!" both shouted, firing just as Zatanna chanted one final time.

Impulse suddenly shot past Green Beetle, swinging him by Wonder Girl's lasso and getting him into the path of the plasma blasts, making him shout in agony as he and Blue Beetle were both hurled by the blast. Then, both landed on a shining white circle of light inside of the restored pillars, the light erupting into a column instantly and enveloping both. As the light faded, so did the silhouette behind Zatanna, the scarab falling off her forehead and shattering on the ground. Cassius walked over to the two beetles and knelt, forming a pair of goo wakizashi and holding one to each of their throats. Both groaned as they stirred, then retracted their armor. Cassius sighed standing and retracting his goo again.

"Welcome back Jaime," Cassius said. "B'arzz, nice to meet you for real."

"It...It worked!" Jaime said. "I'm free of the Reach! For real this time!"

"You're one hundred percent sure?" Batgirl asked. "Because we've been through this before."

"I'm certain of it," Zatanna said.

"Reading no external signals since Zatanna worked her mojo," Tim reported, staring at his wrist computer's holographic screen. "Neither Beetle is in contact with the Reach."

"Hey!" Impulse said grinning widely. "Hermano! Congrats!"

"Thank you!" Jaime said, hugging Zatanna. "Oh, right, like _you're_ happy about this."

"What?" Impulse asked. "I am!"

"You know that?" Jamie smiled. "I believe you."

"Of course!" Impulse grinned, raising a hand. "Up high!"

Jaime gave him a high five and Cassius sighed, looking toward the exit. They were still in for a visit from Black Beetle.

_"It has been so long,"_ B'arzz said. _"I had all but forgotten the sensation of controlling my own body. My gratitude knows no bounds."_

He did his best to smile, but in his true Martian form, it was little more than opening his mouth of pointed teeth.

"Uh, that's great, but Queen Bee's goons are waking up!" Bumblebee said.

"And Black Beetle will be here soon," Cassius said. "Time to make ourselves scarce."

The all nodded and anyone who couldn't fly began to pile into the Supercycle. Cassius formed his wings and took off, scooping up Cassandra and Rose as he flew. Both gasped in surprise before smiling and wrapping their arms around him as he left the tunnel and gained some altitude before beginning to slow for the others to catch up.

"I'm sorry," Cassius said, holding them tightly. "I'm so sorry for shutting you both out. Please forgive me. I don't want to lose you."

Both squeezed him, tucking their faces into him.

"You won't," Rose promised. "Never."

"Please," Cassandra said. "Stay."

Cassius smiled, holding them tighter. "I'm not going anywhere."

They smiled and remained that way as they flew, the others all completely ignoring them once they'd caught up, save for Tim throwing Cassandra a glance before also ignoring them.

* * *

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	59. Chapter 59

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Beginning of the End

Cassius watched as Tim and Cassandra talked quietly by the door. He was willing to bet Tim was asking her to choose. He sighed silently and walked to his room. It was late and he was tired. He sighed as he shifted his clothes into pajamas and lay down. He stared at the door in silence for several seconds before turning his head back to the ceiling. He didn't want to spend another night alone. It was miserable, and he was tired. However, he wasn't sure if anything had changed. He wasn't even sure that he actually _wanted_ things to change. At least, from the way they were before. Recently, yes, but he wasn't sure about anything beyond going back to how they used to be.

He sighed heavily. He shouldn't be assuming anything had changed at all. He was just setting himself up to fall. He looked over at the door again just as it opened and Rose and Cassandra walked in, both smiling. Cassius sat up, eyes widening before softening.

"I thought you were going to go on a date with Tim, Cassandra," Cassius said.

Cassandra shook her head and signed, "He said he wanted me to be happy, and that he couldn't give me that, so he broke it off."

Cassius's eyes widened before he smiled. "I see."

Both girls walked over and sat on either side of him, hugging him, Cassius hugging them back.

"I missed you," Cassius said.

"Sorry," Cassandra sniffed.

"We didn't mean to hurt you," Rose said.

"I'm sorry I shut you out," Cassius said. "I never meant to hurt you."

Both held him tighter.

"Love you, Cassius," Cassandra said. "Love you."

"So do I," Rose said. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Cassius said. "Both of you."

Both curled into him tighter, but his chest constricted.

"I..."

"We know," Rose said. "We'd have been in earlier, but we needed to talk first. We'll wait as long as you need. However old you need us to be before you can allow yourself to be with us, we'll wait."

"Thank you," Cassius said. "But...are you sure...I mean...Are you sure you don't mind...sharing me?"

"We've always shared you," Rose smiled. "If it's just us, we don't mind. It's always been the three of us. We never even considered only one of us having you."

"Really?" Cassius asked, Cassandra nodding. Cassius smiled. "I won't make you wait too long. I promise."

Both nodded and smiled up at him. After a moment, Cassandra reached up hesitantly, only for Cassius to lean in, capturing her lips with his. Cassandra sighed into the kiss, leaning into him. He lay back, bringing her with him just as a second goo upper body formed out of his side, holding his arms out to Rose. She smiled and lay against him, kissing him as he held her. After another few seconds, Cassius pulled back from both kisses, retracting the middle arms and fusing his two upper bodies so that he was holding both of the girls against him. After a minute, Cassandra sniffed, Cassius looking down at her worriedly.

"Sorry," Cassandra cried. "Sorry...kiss Tim."

"Cassandra, it's okay," Cassius said, growing a third arm under her chin to make her look up at him. "I'm not mad."

Cassandra frowned. "But kiss Tim."

"It's alright," Cassius said. "You care about him, and you're attracted to him, so I'm not mad that you kissed him."

"But..." Cassandra trailed off, so Rose sighed, reaching over and turning her head so she could kiss her. Cassandra's eyes went wide instantly.

"It's alright that you kissed Tim, Cassandra, because you chose Cassius," Rose said. "That's the part Cassius cares about. That you're happy, and that you chose him."

Cassandra watched her for a moment before looking to Cassius, who nodded, smiling. Cassandra smiled as well and nodded, kissing Rose, then Cassius, both kisses lasting several seconds. "Thank you. Love you."

Cassius held both girls tighter and smiled, closing his eyes, all three drifting off quickly. The next morning, Cassandra woke him up with a kiss before Rose stole one too. Cassius kissed them both back before heading to take a shower, deciding to skip his run for the morning. After he'd showered and formed clothes for the day, he headed back to his room, only to find Rose and Cassandra just finishing drying their hair from their own showers, not having gotten dressed yet but having dropped their towels.

"Welcome back," Rose smiled, walking over and looping her arms around him as she kissed him, pushing the door closed.

He pulled back and opened his mouth to speak, only for Cassandra to interrupt him with a kiss. He sighed, allowing it for a few seconds before pulling away. "Get dressed, you two. We're going to set ground rules before anything else."

Both girls nodded and got dressed as Cassius sat on the bed.

"Alright," Cassius sighed. "So, first off, no more kissing. I let you get away with it last night and this morning, but I really was serious about waiting."

Both girls nodded, smiling.

"It's going to be a few years, at minimum," Cassius said.

"We'll wait," Rose said. "We were expecting to not be allowed to kiss you anymore. That's why we both did it one last time."

Cassius sighed. "Figures."

"We'll go back to acting like we did before the Reach got you," Cassandra signed. "At least until you're ready."

"Thank you," Cassius said. "Now, want to go beat up Dick?"

Both girls grinned widely and nodded turned to leave, only for Cassius to whistle. They turned and both caught their liquid metal swords' hilts, looking at him in confusion.

"Try them out," Cassius said. "I had Jaime see if his scarab could do anything with them."

Both girls extended the blades, their eyes widening as Cassandra's sword extended a Japanese-style blade about the length of her wakizashi, and Rose's extended double-edged blades about the same size as her blunt swords. Both girls squealed excitedly and retracted the blades before throwing their arms around him, kissing him. He rolled his eyes.

"What'd we just say?" Cassius asked, smiling.

Both girls laughed and raced out of the room. Cassius sighed, shaking his head and followed them to the Batcave, finding Dick just finishing putting his armor on.

"Something come up?" Cassius asked.

"Nah," Nightwing said. "Just going to check on the team."

Cassius nodded. "We'll meet you there."

"Looking for something to do?" Nightwing asked.

"Not really," Rose said. "We just have nothing else to do."

"What about laying around making out all day?" Nightwing asked.

"We're not dating," Rose said. "Well, not yet. We'll wear him down eventually, but for now, we're not together."

"Right," Nightwing said. "Sure you're not. Anyway, if you're going, I'll see you later."

He left and Cassandra and Rose both put their armor on as well, the three of them all heading to the portal and taking it to Taos. As they reached the room they'd been meeting in, however, they found Nightwing staring at a map with a tracer signal in the middle of the ocean.

"What's that?" Cassius asked.

"It's an island," Nightwing said. "One where a certain friend of ours says he can arrange a meeting between Rose and her father."

"Why would I want that?" Rose asked, frowning. "The last two times I met him, he was trying to kill all three of us."

"Because, there's going to be a summit between the Reach and the Light in two days," Nightwing said.

"And as Deathstroke, I'd be able to infiltrate it," Cassius said.

"Actually, I was planning on having Megan infiltrate as Deathstroke," Nightwing said.

"Dick, I'm a trained assassin, who was trained by Deathstroke for years," Cassius said. "I know all his mannerisms, I know how he fights, and I know how he treats people. I'm replacing him."

"But..." Rose trailed off and he turned, to her, lifting her chin.

"I'm not going to kill him," Cassius promised. "And I'm not going to die. The Team will be joining the Summit too, once we ruin it, so you'll be there before I need you."

"You'll need to find out what the Light has planned and what they'll have waiting for the Reach, or us," Nightwing said.

"Oh, please," Cassius snorted. "Deathstroke's the Light's top enforcer right now. He'll know everything. And I know where to find it."

"Alright," Nightwing nodded. "Who are you taking to the family reunion?"

"Cassandra and Rose, obviously, and Megan," Cassius said. "If you can, let Kaldur know to bring Tigress. I want to set up a contingency plan that I need to have them there for."

"She'll be there," Nightwing nodded.

"Good," Cassius said, just as Megan walked in. "We'll go now, then. I'll fill her in on the way."

Nightwing nodded and the the three of them left the building with Megan. Cassius explained what they were going to do on the way and Megan agreed with his reasoning for why he should be the one going under cover.

_"You seem much happier now," _Megan said as she flew the Bio-Ship toward the island. _"Are congratulations in order?"_

_"We're not together,"_ Cassius replied. _"Not yet."_

_"I'm so happy for you!"_ Megan smiled.

_"Thank you,"_ Cassius smiled.

Cassandra and Rose checked and doublechecked their gear as they flew, their anxiousness beginning to make Cassius anxious. Finally, he caught their hands to stop them and gave them both a knowing look as he took a deep breath.

"Cassandra, Rose, I promise you, everything is going to be okay," Cassius said. "Between the three of us, he's not going to be able to win."

"Four," Megan corrected.

"You're just going to take all of the firebombs and ammunition he's got away from him, then let us handle him," Cassius said.

"Are you sure?" Megan asked.

"I'm sure," Cassius said.

She nodded and Cassius turned back to his girls.

"Do you trust me?" Cassius asked, both girls nodding instantly. "I promise you, none of us three are going to die here."

They nodded and both took a deep breath, calming themselves.

"We're here," Megan said.

"Good," Cassius said, standing with the other four as a hole opens in the floor.

He squatted down, looking out through the hole and saw the island was about a half mile ahead and they were still at high altitude.

"Any sign of them?" Cassius asked.

"None," Megan said. "That won't last."

"Right," Cassius nodded. "Let's go. Keep the Bio-Ship up high."

Megan nodded and the four of them left the ship, Cassius flying himself, Cassandra, and Rose, and Megan flying herself, keeping herself invisible. After a few seconds, they landed on the beach and a massive water serpent rose behind them as Deathstroke walked out of the trees, his broadsword across his shoulders and two extra ammo belts across his chest in an X. One of them was filled with dozens of magazines for his pistol, and the other with dozens of firebombs.

"Well well, look at this," Deathstroke said. "I caught the whole happy family."

"Deathstroke," Cassius said. "Pleasure to see you again."

"He is not alone," Kaldur said as he and Artemis walked out of the water, Artemis spitting out her rebreather.

"Hello again Kaldur, Tigress," Cassius said. "Megan, do your thing, then keep those two busy."

Megan nodded and raised her hand, ripping Deathstroke's gun and ammo belts away, hurling them out to sea. He made a snatch for them, but missed as he staggered backward under a hail of rubber bullets from Rose. Once she'd emptied one pistol, she cast it aside, then drew her other and fired that. As she did, Megan began to hurl Artemis and Kaldur around while avoiding attacks from both.

Cassius charged just as Rose's second non-lethal pistol ran dry. Deathstroke slashed long before he arrived, sending his sword's scabbard slamming into Cassius's chest. Cassius staggered back a step and Deathstroke shot forward, only to spin and deflect one of Rose's sword. Rose spun, slashing with her other sword and he twisted his, deflecting it as well before kicking her away and pivoting, deflecting Cassandra's wakizashi. Then, Cassius drilled a fist into the side of his head, sending him staggering away. He spun, slashing at Cassius and Cassius formed a goo wakizashi and deflected the blade before slashing back at Deathstroke, only for him to kick Cassius's forearm, knocking it away. Cassius's foot snapped up in a roundhouse kick and Deathstroke ducked under it, just in time for Cassandra to drop, placing her hands on the ground and smash her foot into his face, sending him staggering backward. Cassius lunged, slamming a punch into his face and he staggered away, dropping his sword. Rose shot forward instantly, slamming her blades into Deathstroke rapidly, forcing him back rapidly before he spun, stripping them from her and moving to stab her, only for Cassandra to slash the blade down, then pivot, slashing back the other way. The blade crashed into his mask and sent it spinning into the air as Deathstroke staggered backward.

"Well done," Deathstroke smirked. "You three got good. Less impressed by your improvement than theirs, Cassius."

"Well, that's unfortunate," Cassius said. "I'll just have to try harder I guess."

"Indeed," Deathstroke said, pulling his staff off his back and extending its blade. "If you don't want one of them to lose an eye trying to protect you again, at least."

Cassius narrowed his eyes, focusing more goo into his muscles before streaking forward, his goo wakizashi flashing around and around at Deathstroke, who began to backpedal rapidly as he struggled to fend him off. Finally, Cassius lunged, moving slashing from both sides, only for Deathstroke to flip over Cassius. However, as he did, a second upper body sprouted from Cassius's back, catching the staff and smashing Deathstroke down on the ground before the primary body shifted into a lower body for the new upper half, already going in the opposite direction. He slammed a foot into Deathstroke's face, hurling him backward. Deathstroke flipped, driving his staff's blade into the ground to skid to a stop beside Kaldur instantly as Artemis and Megan were trading blows.

"I might actually need a hand with this," Deathstroke said. "You got a minute?"

"For you?" Kaldur asked. "Always."

Then, he grabbed Deathstroke by the back of the head, electricity screaming over Deathstroke's body as his staff dropped to the ground. Kaldur kicked it away as Deathstroke collapsed and Cassius restrained him with goo instantly. He lifted him onto his knees as the others all joined him.

"Megan, take us in," Cassius said.

"His mind is shielded from my telepathy," Megan said.

"I know," Cassius said. "He taught me it. That's why we're bringing Rose."

Rose nodded instantly and Megan's eyes glowed green for a moment before they were all standing in Deathstroke's home, after the explosion that destroyed it at the end of their fight when Cassius took Rose from him.

"You've gotten strong, Cassius," Deathstroke said from off to the side, holding a picture and smiling, sadness actually shining from his eye. "I never expected you to beat me so quickly, even after I challenged you to make you try. And I didn't expect Manta's boy to be a deep cover operative. You win this round. Fair and square."

"Thank you," Cassius said. "For what it's worth, sorry I blew up your house all those years ago."

Deathstroke shook his head. "You were doing what you thought was right. Can't fault a man for that. And I'm glad you did. I can see how happy you make her. A father could never ask for more than to have his children safe and happy, even a father as awful as me." He set the picture on what little remained of a shelf and Cassius saw it was of him and a brunette woman holding three children together, Deathstroke holding a brunette infant and the woman holding both a brunette and one with snow-white hair. "Here. This is what you need."

He tossed a manila envelope, the same Cassius's mission intel used to come in, to Cassius. Cassius caught it and gripped the flap only to look up at Deathstroke as Deathstroke moved. He walked to the kitchen, grabbing four upside down wine glasses and a bottle of the God awful whiskey Deathstroke loved to drink. He poured each of them a glass and passed them out before lifting his to his lips and drinking some, smiling contentedly.

"I still don't see how you can smile drinking this shit," Cassius said, also taking a drink.

"Dad has no taste buds," Rose said, drinking some of her own as Megan gagged down a mouthful of her own.

Deathstroke chuckled. "You don't need to drink it if you don't want to, little lady. It won't get you drunk anyway, which ruins the fun."

"I don't see how you call that fun," Megan said, setting the glass down.

Deathstroke chuckled. "It's not something someone with your personality type would understand." He turned back to Cassius. "The Light's going to be ready."

"They've underestimated us every step of the way," Cassius said. "Now that I have this, we'll be able to beat them again."

Deathstroke nodded. "I'd have to agree with that. The Light was never going to allow the Reach to stay, but regardless of our plans, the partnership's going to end as soon as you attack the summit. Will you be ready for the repercussions?"

"Yes," Cassius said. "We'll destroy the Reach if they attack."

Deathstroke nodded, finishing his alcohol and Megan's, Cassius and Rose doing the same. "One last thing before you go. Take care of my daughter, Cassius. Take care of my last living child."

"You have my word," Cassius said. "I won't let any harm come to her."

"Then you have my blessing," Deathstroke said. "Whenever that time comes, you have it."

Cassius's eyes widened before he shook his head, smirking. "Dial it back, Slade. We're not even together."

Deathstroke chuckled. "You won't have to worry about Nemesis for a little while. He's not going to be at the summit."

"Good," Cassius nodded. "Megan, take us out."

"Don't you need to check the folder?" Megan asked.

"No," Cassius said. "As long as I'm holding it when we leave, I'll keep the information. It's something he taught me."

Megan nodded and the world around them faded to darkness before leaving them standing on the beach again. Deathstroke sighed as Cassius closed his eyes, sifting through the knew information, nodding to himself. The Light prepared well, but it would be an easy job to ruin it for them. He opened his eyes again, seeing Rose hugging Deathstroke, who was smiling.

"You be good, Rose," Deathstroke said. "And be careful. The rest of the Light and the Shadows don't care whose child you are."

"I know," Rose said, stepping back. "You taught me to take care of myself. I'll be okay, Dad. I love you."

Deathstroke's eyes began to gloss and he smiled. "Look at you. I let you be taken for a couple years and you go all soft." He chuckled. "Being taken away from me was the best thing to ever happen to you. I love you too, darling."

Rose smiled and turned to the others. Cassius walked over to Kaldur and Artemis, setting a hand on their shoulders and spreading goo over their torsos, which then transformed into their armor, compressing to barely more than a millimeter thick. He formed a gun from his goo, the goo transforming into a life-like replica. He held his hand up, demonstrating that it wouldn't hurt them by trying to shoot his hand, then swung the gun around, shooting at both of them. Both glanced at each other before looking down, seeing the goo had a bullet hole through them and blood spreading from it. Both of their eyes widened before they realized it was just an illusion.

"Useful," Artemis nodded.

Cassius nodded in agreement, retracting the goo forming his fake gun and the goo covering them reformed into their armor, undamaged and free of fake blood.

"Okay," Cassius said. "You two's contingency is set. See you guys soon."

Both nodded and Cassius turned to Megan. She nodded and entered his mind, finding him in the Cave before it was destroyed, sipping at a cup of hot chocolate in the kitchen as he added several pictures and pages of what looked like typed paragraphs to the same envelope Deathstroke had given him.

"I added a plan for who to go where when they infiltrate and when to come out of hiding," Cassius said. "As soon as you're in range, link us all."

Megan nodded and accepted the envelope before leaving. "Oh! You were right! That's a really good idea! Not a bad plan either."

Cassius nodded and turned to Deathstroke, transforming into him, complete with his pistol and ammo belts, though he used a strand of goo to retrieve Deathstroke's actual sword, scabbard, and staff, sheathing the sword and putting both weapons on his back. "How do I look?"

"I think even _I_ wouldn't be able to tell the difference with a few drinks," Deathstroke said.

"Thank you very much," Cassius said. "Now, Megan, kindly take Cassandra and Rose home. I'll be going with these two. Oh, and drop _him_ off somewhere secure and with no outside world contact. At least for now."

Megan nodded and lifted all three with her telekinesis before flying up to the Bio-Ship with them. Cassius retrieved Deathstroke's mask with a strand of goo and pulled it on, then followed Kaldur and Artemis out into the water.

* * *

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	60. Chapter 60

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Summit

Cassius stepped into the cavern and looked around before seeing Black Beetle enter through the Reach's side of the cavern. Cassius nodded and Black Beetle returned the nod.

_"Black Beetle has arrived,"_ Cassius reported. _"We're bringing the sides in now."_

Cassius stepped aside, allowing the Light to enter, along with Kaldur and Artemis. The only ones not present were Lex and Queen Bee. He could sense his goo on their torsos still, so his worry over that began to fade. No one present had enough firepower to punch through it, and if their cover was blown, he'd be able to save them. He'd warned them ahead of time that he'd be shooting them with goo bullets, which would feel like they got hit for real and help sell the reaction, but which would seamlessly fuse with the goo around their torsos to sell the illusion. He looked to the Reach side again as a couple dozen Reach soldiers walked in behind the Reach, filling the winding path down to the flat area in the middle where the two groups would be talking. Cassius was pretty sure it should say something about the two groups that the Light came with no reinforcements besides Kaldur, Tigress, and Ra's al Ghul's bodyguard Ubu, that the Reach knew about, and the Reach brought two dozen armed soldiers, plus Black Beetle.

"Ambassador," Savage greeted the Reach's leader.

"Savage," the Reach Ambassador smiled.

"As head of security for the Reach, I must insist no masks be worn at the summit," Black Beetle said, pointing to Black Manta.

"Simply because you insist is no guarantee," Black Manta countered.

"Manta, if you wouldn't mind," Ra's al Ghul said. "After all, we _are _among friends."

Manta growled in irritation and pulled his helmet off, Cassius and Artemis both unmasking themselves as well.

"Your turn, Beetle," Cassius said.

"I have no mask," Black Beetle said.

"Your armor covered your face, does it not?" Cassius asked.

Black Beetle narrowed his eyes before retracting the armor around his head, revealing his pale skin. Cassius wasn't really surprised to find Black Beetle was the same species as the Reach, but he was glad he could convince him into exposing himself to a headshot. That would make it easier to take out their biggest gun in one go, if given the chance. And he would feel no guilt for killing him, given how dangerous he was. The Justice League and the rest of the Team may not approve of killing no matter what, but he was willing to take an ass chewing, and possibly jail time, in exchange for getting rid of the biggest threats.

"Satisfied?" Ra's asked.

Black Beetle growled irritably and Cassius nodded mutely. Black Beetle stepped back, allowing the Ambassador to speak without talking around him.

"Excellent," the Ambassador said. "Then with these formalities out of the way..."

"Let us begin," Savage finished.

"And the _rest_ of the Light?" the Ambassador asked. "Won't _they_ be joining us?"

"Our more...public members are busy conducting damage control to mitigate your recent defeats," Ra's said, the Ambassador's smile dropping into a glare.

"And in any case, we are sufficient," Savage said.

"Fine," the Ambassador said. "I know you _called_ this summit, but the Reach has come with grievances against the Light. Please explain how the young Earth champions were allowed access to Bialyan Scarab temple under _your_ control."

"If I may respond," Kaldur spoke up.

"No you may not!" Black Beetle said flatly. "Manta, keep your whelp meat silent."

"Beetle, your insolence grows progressively less...charming," Manta warned.

"My friends," Savage said. "I think we can all agree that in recent days, no one has done more, sacrificed more, for both the Light _and_ the Reach, than Kaldur'ahm. That is why he was entrusted with security for this summit, and why he's entitled to a voice here."

"Of course," the Ambassador said, raising a hand to keep Black Beetle from stepping forward. "He may speak."

"Thank you, Ambassador," Kaldur said, walking forward. "We acknowledge your concerns over the actions of my former team. But you must acknowledge that the Light could not have known the significance of the temple or that ancient Earth magic could overcome Reach Technology to free Blue Beetle and Green Beetle from your thrall. If the Reach had been ore forthcoming about how long ago their scarab had come to infiltrate the Earth with a Beetle warrior, the Light might have made the connection to the temple, and certainly would have provided better security for it."

"I told you I wanted to study how Blue Beetle's scarab had crashed prior to putting it back on Mode," the Reach's head scientist, the same female who had overseen Cassius's torture, said. "If you had followed my advice, we would have known about the temple and-" she stopped as the Ambassador turned to glare at her, making her bow to cover for herself. "Apologies. I spoke out of turn."

"No my dear," Manta said. "You were quite correct to call your master's tactics into question. The Light has provided everything the Reach required, and you aliens have let it all slip away."

"I don't believe this is a productive direction for our discussion," the Ambassador said.

"No?" Ra's asked. "Your public approval ratings are at the record low, as are sales of the Reach drink, which you had hoped would enslave the populace."

"You allowed the young heroes you kidnapped to be rescued by the very teenagers whose Meta-Genes you enhanced," Savage accused.

"After allowing _their_ escape as well," Manta added.

"Worst of all," Kaldur continued, "Blue Beetle and Green Beetle have slipped from your grasp and fallen into the hands of the enemy, the Justice League."

"Rest assured," the Ambassador said, voice strained with his waning patience. "Both Beetles will soon return to the fold. In fact, Black Beetle has been summoned to Earth from his post, guarding access to the key chamber on the War World-"

"To _kill_ Blue and Green," Black Beetle interrupted.

"So that their scarabs may be reset and installed upon new host bodies that will forever be slaves to the Reach," the scientist finished.

"So do not question us on that score, or any other!" the Ambassador snapped.

"So you can question the Light, and bring grievances against them, yet we are not afforded the same right?" Cassius asked. "And here I thought partnerships were supposed to be equal."

"You should remember, Deathstroke, the Earth is now the property of the Reach!" the Ambassador said. "And per our original agreement, the Light is merely our favored agents amongst the humans."

"Show the proper respect or suffer the consequences," Black Beetle threatened.

"No agreement exists that makes a slave of Black Manta," Manta said, walking forward.

"No agreement exists that guarantees the _life_ of Black Manta," Black Beetle snarled, stepping forward to meet him, towering over Manta by several feet.

"Manta guarantees that himself!" Manta snapped, raising his shoulder-mounted rocket launcher, Black Beetle forming a plasma cannon on his chest in exchange.

Cassius drew his pistol, activating a laser sight on the underside, which Deathstroke kept there exclusively for warnings in situations where he wasn't supposed to kill right away, such as this. He held the laser between Black Beetle's eyes, and Beetle glared at him but both sides held fire.

"It seems we have a standoff," Ra's said.

"No, we don't," Black Beetle said, forming his armor over his head and jerking it to the side as he slammed the back of his fist into Manta's head, hurling him away.

Cassius squeezed off a single round and it clipped the outside corner of Black Beetle's right eye, shattering it, then the right side of his helmet as well, tearing a gash in the side of his head, but making him freeze in surprise as Cassius's laser once again locked itself between Black Beetle's eyes.

"Aren't armor piercing rounds just the best?" Cassius asked. "That was your one warning shot, Beetle. Stand down, or I see what color brains you aliens have."

Fury filled Black Beetle's face and he roared in rage, his chest's cannon firing at Cassius, who flipped over the blast, squeezing off three rounds, all three hitting one of the weak points Jaime's scarab had told him about. One ripped through Black Beetle's right armpit, another through the armor on the left side of his neck, and the last slamming squarely into the armor over his groin and shattering it, though it didn't penetrate. Before he could fire again, however, the Reach Soldiers all began to fire as well.

_"Hold position!"_ Cassius ordered the Team.

"Non-lethal, Deathstroke," Savage said. "At least, for now."

Cassius holstered his pistol instantly and drew his staff, charging alongside Artemis, who had her ninjato in-hand. Black Beetle roared in rage, forming his arms into blades and moved to meet them, their weapons clashing with his several times before Cassius flipped over Black Beetle just as he fired, making it hit the ground. He landed on his feet and dropped into a crouch as Black Beetle turned, driving the blade of his staff into the cannon on his chest, breaking it and making electricity arc over Black Beetle's body before he grabbed the staff and spun, hurling him. At the same time, Artemis moved to use her sword to block a laser heading for Ra's al Ghule, being sent stumbling into him.

"Apologies, Great One," Artemis said.

"No need," Ra's said. "You have my...thanks."

_"You're burned, Artemis,"_ Cassius said as he was fending off Black Beetle's blades rapidly. _"Be ready for the contingency, both of you."_

_"Right," _Artemis said.

_"Standing by,"_ Kaldur said, currently waiting beside his father.

Cassius deflected an arm blade just as Black Beetle formed a sonic cannon from his chest. Cassius spun around him instantly, avoiding the blast before driving slashing Black Beetle across the back of both knees, dropping him onto them, then slammed the base of it into the side of his head, knocking him over sideways before leaping away and tossing a small explosive sphere into the sonic cannon. A second later, it exploded, hurling Black Beetle backward with a hole in his chest. Cassius hurled a small dart with a sedative on it after Black Beetle, but he managed to block it with his arm, then flipped and landed on his feet, his armor regenerating again.

As he did, Artemis fired two arrows from her self-reloading, rapid-fire, crossbow into the ground below a group of Reach troops, polyurethane foam trapping them instantly. Then, Black Beetle flew at Cassius with his wings extended and his a jetpack on his back. Cassius charged, then flipped into the air over Black Beetle as he slashed, slashing him down the back with his staff's blade, causing the jetpack to go out instantly, only for Black Beetle to flip, placing his hands on the ground then flip his feet to the ground and jump forward throwing a punch at Cassius. Cassius spun around it, then flipped away from a blade as Black Beetle formed his left arm into it and slashed at him in one movement. He managed to avoid it and Manta charged, only or Kaldur to step between them just as Black Beetle formed another sonic cannon.

"Enough!" Kaldur said, holding both back and making them pause. "We are allies, not enemies! Any conflict between us only benefits our true opponents, the Justice League and their sidekicks!"

"Kaldur'ahm is quite correct," Savage said.

"Agreed," the Ambassador said. "We must not allow petty disagreements to drive a wedge between us. Gratitude, Kaldur'ahm." He clasped his hands and bowed to Kaldur for a moment, then turned to Black Beetle. "Stand down, warrior."

"Ambassador-"

"Stand down!" the Ambassador snapped.

Black Beetle snarled in rage and turned, walking back to his place, using the sonic cannon to free the trapped Reach soldiers from the foam. Kaldur looked to Manta and he nodded, retracting his shoulder's rocket launcher. Cassius retracted his staff's blade and put it away, then swapped his pistol's magazine for a fresh one, refilling the one he removed without anyone noticing.

"Should we not be concerned that Superman, Batman, the Lanterns, and the rest will soon return to Earth and once again sway public opinion to their side?" Kaldur asked.

"Superman and those accused with him will never leave Rimbor," Savage said. "The attack we forced them to make on that world, plus a few well-placed bribes, has guaranteed their convictions."

"And the green Lanterns are forbidden by Guardian treaty from returning to Earth now that we've _convinced_ UN Secretary Tseng to welcome us here," the Ambassador said. "As for public opinion, I wouldn't be concerned. Though the tide has turned to a certain degree, it will be a simple matter to build on the foundation of half-truths we have already used to discredit the League in order to...discredit them...again." He trailed off as Ra's al Ghul walked over to Artemis, Cassius gripping his pistol instantly and everyone turning to see what was happening.

"Great One?" Artemis asked, only to gasp as he grabbed her charm and ripped it off, breaking the spell disguising her.

"Artemis," Savage growled.

"I...don't understand," the Ambassador said. "I thought Artemis was dead!"

"So did we all," Savage growled. "But it seems Tigress _is_ Artemis."

"This is a Glamour Charm created, I'd wager, by Zatanna, or Doctor Fate, to hide Artemis's true identity," Ra's said.

"But...Kaldur'ahm killed Artemis," the Ambassador said. "If she lives, and in disguise as his lieutenant, then that means..."

"That means Aqualad duped them all," Black Beetle said. "Including his own father."

_"Team, hold position,"_ Cassius said.

"Kill them both," the Ambassador sighed, Black Beetle forming a pair of blades.

"No!" Manta snapped, moving to defend Kaldur. "You will not kill my son!"

"He's right," Cassius said, drawing his pistol and shooting both of them, his goo bullets knocking both to the ground and fusing with the goo defending them, forming them both convincing bullet wounds and slowly-expanding bloodstains. "The Light takes care of its own." He holstered his pistol.

"Kaldur!" Manta said, cradling Kaldur, who was pretending to die slowly, where as Artemis was pretending to be dead before she hit the ground.

"It's too late, father," Kaldur said. "I have already...won."

He let his head fall to the side and let his hand fall, a small device in his palm flashing several times before a prerecorded holographic message of Kaldur began to play.

"If you are watching this, then your summit is truly over," the recorded Kaldur said. "The Light and the Reach deserve each other. Both sides _played_ at being partners, but the Reach believes the Light to be their naïve _tools_ of conquest when, in fact, the Light has manipulated the Reach from day one."

"Shut this off!" Savage snarled.

"How?" Cassius asked.

Beside the holographic Kaldur, a screen formed, displaying the images of the six Leaguers currently standing trial.

"It was the Light that brought Earth to the Reach's attention by sending the Justice League to Rimbor," Kaldur said. "The Light set their trap, and the Reach snapped at the bait, fulfilling the Light's desire to thrust our world into the galactic spotlight." As he spoke, the images cycled between an image of Lobo holding the Krolotean that had tried to impersonate Tseng, then the War World hovering in the sky over Earth. "Part of their perverse survival of the fittest scheme for the planet, which they believe will transform the Earth and the Light into the eventual rulers of the Milky Way. Though the Light made a deal to help the reach take the Earth, they have also sabotaged the Reach's efforts. They kept the enhanced Meta-Teens out of the Reach's hands. They added a neutralizing agent to the Reach's drink so the Earth's population would _not_ become servile. They turned public opinion _against_ the Reach. And they _intentionally_ allowed the Team access to the scarab temple to cleanse Blue and Green Beetle. So you see, any agenda either side imagined they shared was not but a carefully crafted illusion. I trust I have shattered that illusion, as well as whatever remains of this sorry alliance. Good night."

Then, the hologram faded.

"Kaldur," Manta breathed. "Kaldur what have you done?"

"He has, in death, done more to damage my plans than any living creature has wrought in fifty thousand years," Savage growled. "I'd be impressed, if I wasn't so-"

He was cut off by the Ambassador's shriek of rage.

"You earthlings are a pestilence and a plague!" the Ambassador seethed. "You dare sabotage us!? Dare betray us!? Have you forgotten who controls the War World? The Light is fortunate we do not carve up your planet as we speak!"

"That would indeed impress, as _I_ have the War World's crystal key," Savage said, stepping forward to tower over the Ambassador.

"That is all I needed to know," Kaldur said, standing.

"Kaldur," Manta said. "You're..."

"Alive, yes," Kaldur said.

"If you would?" Artemis asked, holding out a hand to Ra's al Ghul to ask for help standing, only for Cassius to step up beside her and pull her to her feet. "And I always heard the Great One was such a gentleman."

"Impossible!" Savage snarled. "Deathstroke!?"

"You would think that between the Light and the Reach, one of your groups would recognize your greatest creation," Cassius said as he transformed himself back to himself in his armor, complete with the mask, though he kept the pistol. He finished just as the broadsword began to hover at Savage's throat, courtesy of Megan, who was standing in the Light's entryway now. "Welcome to the party, Megan. Kaldur, Artemis, I'll be taking this back, now."

He held his arm out and the goo covering both of them reached over, encasing his arm and sinking into him, Cassius already focusing goo to his muscles.

"Copycat," Savage snarled.

"Not anymore," Cassius said. "You all saw to that. I go by Void now, thanks to David Cain, rest his soul, and Lady Shiva."

"You see, we value our true friends," Kaldur said. "And unlike you, we are not short on them."

_"Come on in, boys and girls,"_ Cassius said.

Instantly, Connor, Mal, and Bumblebee entered behind the Reach, and Dick, Barbara, and Wally joined Megan.

"Hey there Vandy," Wally greeted Savage, then adopted the same voice he talked to dogs and babies with. "You miss me?"

"Well played," Savage said. "Well planned."

"Thank you very much," Cassius said. "I think I did pretty well for coming up with a plan all on my own for the first time since I stopped being an assassin."

Savage glared at him. "You, of all people, should know, the Light always has contingencies."

"Oh, I do," Cassius smirked, just as the Brain, a brain preserved and kept alive in a wheeled, cylindrical, mechanical body, sealed both tunnels.

Then, he opened the roof of the cave, revealing a volcanic shaft, from the top of which Shadows grunts began to drop, bearing all manor of melee weapons, including Apokolyptan tech. The Shadows landed around the three groups of Team members, and Cassius yawned, covering his mouth with the hand not holding his pistol.

"Really now, Great Ego," Cassius smirked, looking to Ra's. "You need to update your playbook. Or just throw it out. You think I didn't plan for you to drop reinforcements from above?"

"I've had my fill of your interference," Savage growled. "Do not expect to survive. Kill them all. Superboy may present a problem, but we'll deal with him when the other children are bleeding on the ground."

"Still you refer to us as children," Kaldur said. "No wonder our successes mount. You constantly underestimate us."

"Show time!" Cassius shouted, grinning widely.

A Shadow behind the three of them pulled his mask off, revealing himself as Blue Beetle, just as his wings formed and he shot into the air, firing a pair of sonic cannons into the Reach soldiers. The other Shadows moved to attack, only for one to knock one out, then expand into La'gaan, who went after Ubu instantly, another Shadow beside him growing into a dark green gorilla and leaping at Monsieur Mala. Cassius sent out strands of goo instantly, yanking pins on smoke grenades all around the room as Wally sped around doing the same thig. Within seconds, smoke filled the room and the Batman Inc members currently present went to work slaughtering the Shadows that tried to fight them while Connor, Mal, and Bumblebee went to work on the Reach soldiers. A moment later, the others they'd snuck in with the Shadows began to turn on the actual Shadows. Wonder Girl used her lasso, Tim used his bo staff, Cassandra and Rose both used their blunt swords, and Impulse used his speed.

Cassius shot forward as soon as they were all doing their part, and slammed a punch into Savage's jaw, rocking him back a step before following it up with several more punches, then jumped and spun, slamming a kick into his chest, hurling him away. As soon as he landed, Ra's al Ghul reached him, slamming a blistering series of strikes into him before leaping backward as Rose and Cassandra slashed at him. Cassius smirked at him instantly.

"It is true," Savage said. "The Light _has_ always underestimated this group of heroes, but no more. It is time!"

A gold ring with a large red stone on his right middle finger began to shine before Klarion shot out of it as a glowing red specter. He blasted the sword Megan was still holding to Savage's throat and it transformed into a massive flaming serpent, which began to expand rapidly as it charged at Cassius.

"Play nice!" Klarion laughed.

Megan yanked Cassius away from the snake and Rose tackled Cassandra out of the way, Ra's dodging it as well. When Cassius landed, he thanked Megan for saving him, then glanced at the girls to make sure they were okay, seeing they were unharmed, but were struggling against Ra's now. Cassius looked back to the snake in time to grab Megan and form a set of wings, taking off just ahead of a bite, then flying as fast as he could to escape it.

"I'll draw it off!" Megan said. "Slow down Black Beetle!"

Cassius nodded and released Megan, who used telekinesis to splash the snake while Cassius headed for the second biggest threat in the room. He could see Artemis going to fight Ra's with Cassandra and Rose, so they'd be fine for now. He looked to Savage and Klarion just as Klarion teleported them pair away.

"Cowardly meat!" Black Beetle shouted, just before Cassius's fist exploded into the side of his head, sending him crashing across the cavern.

"Savage has the right idea!" Ra's said, kicking Rose into Artemis, only for Cassandra to catch his leg and spin, hurling him into a boulder. "I knew I saw potential in you. This battle is pointless! Do not resist! The heroes have no jurisdiction here!"

"Meaning _every_ piece of meat on the Light is a coward!" Black Beetle translated, forcing Cassius to retreat in order to avoid a sonic cannon. Then, Black Beetle launched himself across the room, forming a blade and driving it through Ra's al Ghul's chest from behind.

"Master!" Ubu shouted, hurling La'gaan away and sprinting to him.

"Such is a fate of all meat," Black Beetle said.

Cassius slammed a kick into Black Beetle, hurling him just as Ubu caught Ra's al Ghul. Black Beetle bounced one before Cassius's arm snapped up, his pistol firing over and over. Bits of the enemy Beetle's armor shattered with every shot, but before Cassius could focus enough to score a real hit, Cassandra and Rose's grappling hooks drove themselves through Cassius's gut from behind, yanking him backward out of the flaming snake's path. As he reached them, he flipped backward, forcing the hooks out of himself before landing behind both and grabbing them, launching them all away as the snake tried to swallow him again, missing. He saw Megan lying on its back and wanted to help, but there was literally nothing he could do to fight it. Before he could worry about it, La'gaan leapt down its throat, then expanded, obliterating its head and making it begin to fade. He caught Megan and shielded her from the landing, then also from the snake's heat as it faded.

Cassius sighed in relief, setting the girls down, then turning to Black Beetle, who formed a blade on one arm and a sonic cannon on the other, his armor already repaired.

"Together," Cassandra said.

"To the end," Rose agreed.

"Always," Cassius said, forming himself a pair of goo wakizashi, absorbing his pistol, as the girls switched to their liquid metal swords.

Then, the three of them charged, Cassius sending a goo spike out of his chest to shatter the sonic cannon before it could fire. Black Beetle formed a second blade instead, and a moment later, the three of them began to clash with him rapidly, their five total blades clashing with his two in a near-constant shower of sparks and blood. Cassius knocked one of his blades aside, his other tearing down across Black Beetle's chest as Cassandra slashed the front of his abdomen and one of Rose's swords slashed his right thigh, the other blocking his other blade. Black Beetle shouted in agony, staggering away before Cassius lunged, driving a wakizashi into the sonic cannon Black Beetle formed from his chest, causing it to explode, incinerating Cassius's sword, but hurling Beetle away with a stab wound through his chest.

Black Beetle crashed down beside where the Reach scientist and Ambassador were pinned to a pair of stalagmites by blue staples. However, in a brief sentence, he told the Ambassador that he no longer recognized his authority, then freed the scientist and took off with her, firing a plasma blast at Blue Beetle and Megan when they tried to chase him, giving him the chance to escape. Cassius sighed. That took care of all of the biggest guns. He looked around the room, only to stop, realizing that the fight was over. Black Beetle had been the last opponent standing. He sighed heavily and dropped onto his ass, Rose and Cassandra almost instantly throwing their arms around him. He laughed happily, holding them tightly for a long while as Artemis, Wally, and Nightwing went to congratulate Kaldur on his successful infiltration and sabotage of the Reach and the Light. He'd congratulate him and welcome him back later. For now, he wanted to stay right where he was.

"Sorry," Cassandra said, pulling back, Cassius and Rose both looking over at her, seeing a gash in her right side, about level with her ribs. "Stitch."

Cassius smiled, nodding. "It's alright. I'll take care of it when we get home. Does it hurt bad?"

Cassandra shook her head so Cassius spread goo over it to stop the bleeding, then pushed himself up, pulling both girls into a hug again. After a moment, they walked over to the others and Nightwing and Aqualad congratulated him on his plan's successful execution. Cassius thanked them and began to restrain everyone. Then, he and a handful of others were off to deliver them to Belle Reve.

* * *

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	61. Chapter 61

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Disaster

Cassius stared at the holoscreen in silence. The Team had raided the Reach's ship to capture Black Beetle. Instead, Black Beetle had destroyed Green Beetle's scarab, then Jaime had destroyed Black Beetle's. However, as soon as he did, he reported that Black Beetle had started a plan to destroy the Earth in order to erase all traces of them having tried to conquer it. Now, barely two hours later, they were outside Lex Corp in Metropolis with the entire Team, aver Leaguer still on Earth, and the newly freed Meta-Teens, Arsenal, and a few extra heroes, all of them being briefed on the plan by Captain Atom. They'd be splitting up to reach the machines the Reach was using to destroy the world, called MFDs, Magnetic Field Disruptors. Each MFD was guarded by a pair of drones equal in power to a Beetle, and they only had a limited amount of time to reach the MFDs and use Anti-Reach software Lex Luthor had provided to shut the MFDs down. If they didn't make it in time, whatever machines they couldn't stop would go chrysalis and become unstoppable. In total, there were forty three heroes and twenty MFDs. The teams were going to be given several cannisters that had Luthor's software inside of it, which they would just have to touch against the MFD to shut it down. That didn't sound hard, except for the beetle drones.

"I'll give you your assignments, and then we go," Captain Atom said.

"Safe," Cassandra said worriedly, taking Cassius's hand.

"I'm not going anywhere without you two," Cassius said.

"Void, Orphan, and Ravager, you three will be going here," Captain Atom said, sending the three of them the coordinates of their target.

All three spun and took off instantly, Cassius flying them with his wings. Their target was near the arctic circle, so it was a long flight. However, Cassius had picked up a few tricks when he regained his memory. Currently, he was using two extra sets of wings to fly faster. After barely an hour, he stopped the MFD, and the beetle drones guarding it.

"Void to Watchtower," Cassius said. "How much time on the clock until it goes Chrysalis?"

"Ten minutes," Snapper Carr, who was a friend of the League and currently coordinating the squads from the Watchtower, responded.

Cassius flew low. "I'm dropping you running!"

Both girls nodded, grabbing their liquid metal swords before he released them. Both rolled before taking off at a sprint as Cassius formed himself a pair of goo wakizashi, a tail coiled up on his back holding his cannister. The drones began to fire plasma blasts at him and he flipped and swerved around them slashing both drones into the ground as he reached them, then flipped, his tail flinging the canister at the MFD. The drones both rose into the air just in time for Rose and Cassandra to slash them, destroying both.

Cassius frowned as the canister stuck to the MFD and the sphere of spinning energy over it faded. Cassius raised a hand to his communicator. "Hey, didn't the briefing say the drones were as powerful as a Beetle Warrior? Like Blue Beetle? Or Black Beetle? Oh, and our MFD's down."

"Black Beetle was an exception," Nightwing responded. "However easy you just took that one down, do you think you could beat Blue Beetle as quickly?"

Cassius considered for a second. "If he didn't know my weakness, yeah, probably."

"We did it!" Rose cheered, throwing her arms around Cassius, who laughed as he caught her.

"Yes we did," Cassius smiled. "You two did good. I'm proud."

"The Earth's magnetic field is still being disrupted," Captain Atom reported suddenly.

"Blue Beetle to Watchtower," Jaime said. "I'm reading a twenty first MFD. It's in the arctic. I didn't notice it because of the Earth's North Pole. Sending coordinates."

Cassius pulled up his wrist computer as he got the coordinates. "This is Void. My group's on the way, but if Flash and Impulse can get there first, they definitely should."

"On the way!" Flash said.

"Same!" Impulse said.

Cassius began to fly, but it only took a few moments for them to send out the warning.

"Flash to Watchtower," Flash said. "The Magnetic Field Disruptor...It's already gone chrysalis."

Cassius swore harshly, pushing himself as fast as he could.

"I'm not sure if the egg-"

"The egg is useless now," Luthor said. "You're too late."

"What now?" Flash asked.

"Now you run," Luthor said.

"Hey, I'm no quitter," Flash said. "There's gotta be-"

"I didn't say run away, I said run," Luthor said. "Together, you and Impulse should be able to negate the Chrysalis by running counter to its energy flow."

"Is it really that simple?" Flash asked.

"I wouldn't call it simple," Atom, a Leaguer with the ability to shrink or grow himself using his costume's tech and who usually stayed about two inches tall, said. "You'll be attempting to syphon its power with your own speed trails, it'll take a massive amount of kinetic energy. And no matter what, _don't slow down_ until the Chrysalis is completely neutralized!"

Just then, Kid Flash shot past under Cassius and the girls. Cassius shook his head. He wasn't fast enough to help. He'd get himself killed. Cassius tried to come up with a plan. Finally, the Chrysalis appeared on the horizon, a tornado of energy with the three speedsters blurring around and around the bottom of it. As Cassius rapidly approached, he watched as bolt after bolt of energy bounced off Flash and Impulse, then slammed into Wally. Cassius swooped low, stopping just long enough to drop off Cassandra and Rose, then flew into the air. He swung his arms, firing eight goo spikes into the ground around their track, each spike sprouting two more short spikes near the top end, both angled outward like a crude trident. A moment later, just before a bolt of energy crashed into Wally, it shot sideways, slamming into one of the lightning rods. Wally cheered, passing another, which drew away a bolt of energy. The next hit him. Then another slammed into a lightning rod. And another. And another. Another slammed into his back. The next hit a lightning rod. Then, suddenly, the vortex faded, a bolt of energy striking each of the lightning rods for several seconds before ending. And just like that, it was over. Flash and Impulse slowed to a stop and Wally began to bounce across the ice. Artemis shrieked in fear instantly, sprinting to him from where she and the other original Team members, plus Blue Beetle, had landed the Bio-Ship beside Cassandra and Rose. Cassius flew down beside Artemis and Wally, and Wally smiled up at him, one of his hands held in Artemis's as his body faded in and out between transparent and not.

"Hey man," Wally said. "I'm not sure yet, but you might have saved my butt."

"Couldn't let the comedy relief die," Cassius said. "Artemis would kill me."

Wally laughed. "She'd kill me too."

Slowly, his body began to settle, returning to normal. He sighed in relief, settling into Artemis's arms more. Artemis began to cry happily, holding him tightly, and Cassius looked around, seeing the relief on everyone else's faces too.

"How did you know that would work?" Flash asked.

"I didn't," Cassius said. "It just looked like lightning, so I figured I'd give it a try."

Flash nodded. "Good thinking."

Cassius nodded and looked over to where the Chrysalis had been, his spikes all having been disintegrated, or erased, or whatever had almost happened to Wally. The others all joined them, congratulating the three speedsters. After a few more minutes, once Artemis had calmed down and Wally felt okay to be helped into the Bio-Ship, they all headed back tot he Watchtower to rest. A few hours later, a glowing green jet-shaped spaceship made from a green Lantern's ring flew down to the ruins of Mount Justice and they all flew down to greet their returning mentors.

"Aqualad, what happened here?" Batman asked Kaldur the moment he saw him, not even questioning his presence.

Cassius assumed that Megan and Connor had filled them all in when they went to deliver the holographic recording of Savage's confession in order to get the Leaguers exonerated.

"Fear not," Kaldur said. "The crisis has been averted."

Batman stared at him for a moment before nodding. "I expect a full report from you, Nightwing, and Void. And that includes why my computer is reading an intruder in the Batcave right now and no one has reacted."

Cassius and Nightwing both looked at each other before checking their wrist computers, seeing that they had the same alert. Both shouted in surprise and Cassius took off with six wings, taking Nightwing with him. He flew to the nearest Zeta tube and they used it to enter the Batcave, only to find Stephanie Brown looking around interestedly. Nightwing's jaw dropped and Cassius began to laugh.

"Oh, there you are," she said. "I was expecting you to show up sooner, but I suppose you were probably busy after saving the world."

"How did you find this place?" Cassius asked, grinning.

"Pure coincidence," Stephanie said. "I tried to find someplace to hide from the lightning caused by the storm the Reach made and wound up finding a cave. And wouldn't you know it, it wasn't just some random cave, either."

"I don't believe it," Nightwing said. "Of all the...I guess that makes the choice easy."

"That depends on the boss," Cassius said, just as the Batcave's computer announced Batman arriving via Zeta-tube. "Batman allow me to introduce Stephanie Brown, daughter of Cluemaster, and instrumental in helping us stop him. She helped Orphan and Ravage rescue me from the Reach and saved my life in doing so, then after she helped us stop her father, she wanted us to train her to be a hero, and then during a storm the Reach caused in an attempt to destroy the world, she hid from lightning in a cave, which, apparently by coincidence alone, happened to be this one."

Batman stared at her for a long few moments before turning back to the Zeta-tube. "Be here a eight o'clock tomorrow. I'll test you then. Void, take her home. Nightwing, come with me."

Both nodded and did as instructed.

"Is that a good sign or bad?" Stephanie asked.

"There are no good signs with Batman," Cassius said. "The test is going to hurt, the training you'll get after he inevitably accepts you is going to hurt, and the life is hard."

"You think he'll accept me?" Stephanie asked.

"Of course," Cassius said. "I told him you saved my life. You're basically in already. The test is to figure out where you're starting from."

"I see," Stephanie smiled, then nodded. "Alright. Thank you. I probably only have you to thank."

"I dunno," Cassius said. "You might owe the Reach one for helping you find the Batcave. He tends to keep anyone who finds it close enough to monitor anyway. Of course, the Reach tried to kill me, so feel free to not thank them."

Stephanie laughed as he landed behind her house. "Thanks for the lift. Tell Cassandra and Rose I said hi."

"I will," Cassius said. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have an ass chewing to go receive."

Stephanie nodded and Cassius turned, flying into the air, then back toward the Batcave to use the Zeta-tube to head to the Watchtower.

* * *

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	62. Chapter 62

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Passage

Cassius watched Cassandra and Stephanie sparring. Stephanie was a quick study, but she still wasn't anywhere near what she needed to be. she'd get there, though. It had only been a couple of months, and already she was able to give Tim a hard time, if not beat him. Cassandra had come a long way too. She was now able to give Batman a hard time, though Batman was still able to win most of the time thanks to his experience beating her skill, not that it looked easy. But probably the best improvement was Rose. She had begun to get the hang of choosing when to use her foresight ability in a fight, allowing her to improve rapidly as she got used to fighting while looking ahead, and controlling how far ahead to look.

The sparring match ended as Cassandra took Stephanie down. Cassius smiled just as Wonder Girl and Tim walked into the room, hand-in-hand. Cassius's eyes widened slightly, but they passed through the room without stopping their conversation, Wonder Girl talking about getting something to eat after whatever movie they were going to see.

"When did they start dating?" Cassius asked.

"Right after we stopped the MFDs," Rose said. "Tim said it was some kind of end-of-the-world thing and she kissed him, so he decided to see where it went."

"I see," Cassius said. "Fair enough."

"You're just glad he's leaving your girlfriend alone," Rose grinned knowingly."

"I'm glad I don't need to tell him to," Cassius corrected her as Cassandra walked over, smiling.

"Are we going?" Cassandra signed.

"Of course," Cassius nodded. "I was just waiting for you to get done."

Cassandra smiled and nodded and the three of them left the Watchtower via Zeta tube, Cassius flying them to the restaurant where he'd made reservations. As they flew, Wally, Flash, and Bart all streaked past below them. After about two weeks of recovery, he'd gone for a run with Bart, only to find that his superspeed had been upgraded to about level with the Flash and Impulse's. Then, once he'd gotten the hang of it, he'd retired again, leaving the mantle of Kid Flash to Bart, he and Artemis returning to their retirement together.

Finally, Cassius landed a short distance from the restaurant and retracted his wings, he and the girls walking to the restaurant together. It was nothing fancy, but it was as close to a date as Cassius was willing to allow at the moment. He had no intention of anything happening, but he'd agreed to go out to dinner with them. As they took their seats, both girls absolutely shone with excitement and joy, and he chuckled, shaking his head.

* * *

Cassius smiled as he watched Cassandra tearing through her presents. They'd managed to make it through Christmas without the rest of their friends making a big fuss over trying to get Cassius to hurry up and date them, though they _did_ tease him about it. he refocused on the present as she reached his gift to her. She'd taken her father's picture out of her locket a few days ago, and had kept the locket empty. So, Cassius had swiped it, then suffered through making her think she'd lost it fore days, Cassandra being heartbroken the entire time. Now, however, as she lifted her locket from the small box, she glared at him instantly. He smiled apologetically and she opened the locket and gasped, then squealed and all but leapt across the circle, hugging him. Several of the others laughed, a few of them having figured out what he was doing about a day ago.

_"Perfect time to kiss her,"_ Megan said telepathically, a third hand growing from Cassius's back to flip her off.

Cassandra pulled back and put her locket back on, staring at the pictures inside of it, one of Cassius and the other Rose, before closing it and returning to her presents. Once she was finished with them, Cassius and his two clones served everyone cake and ice cream, the real one sitting with Rose and Cassandra as he ate and reabsorbing the clones through his back when they were finished.

"So, you can make two clones now?" Wally asked.

Cassius nodded, swallowing his bite of cake before speaking. "Every time I separate goo from myself, my bogy automatically regrows it. So a couple of months ago, Rose asked why I didn't just use that to stock up. Kinda depressed that in all the years I was an assassin I never thought of it."

Wally laughed. "Yeah, that seems like a pretty useful trick for you to just never think of."

"You mean like how you use your speed to vibrate your-" Cassius was cut off when Artemis shoved his fork into his mouth with a bite of cake on it.

"You told him?" Wally asked, face scarlet.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Artemis said flatly.

Several of the others laughed, Bart grinning and scratching his chin, at least until Artemis threw a scoop of chocolate ice cream into his forehead, once again making the others laugh. After a while of socializing, everyone headed home, Cassius and the girls heading to the room they were sharing for the night. As Rose closed the door, Cassius pulled Cassandra into him, capturing her lips for a long few seconds, Cassandra kissing him back happily.

"Happy birthday, Cassandra," Cassius smiled.

"Love you," Cassandra smiled.

"I love you, too," Cassius smiled. "I'm not ready yet, but I love you."

Cassandra nodded, smiling.

"Do I get one?" Rose asked.

"Is it your birthday?" Cassius asked.

"Oh fine," Rose pouted.

Cassius chuckled and kissed her on the cheek before climbing into bed, both girls joining him.

"You'd better kiss me on my birthday, too," Rose said.

"I will," Cassius said. "As long as you behave in the mean time."

"Deal," Rose smiled, setting her head on his chest.

* * *

Cassius sprinted through the streets as quickly as he could. Joker was free. He had broken out of Arkham in the middle of a riot orchestrated by a couple of the more violent inmates, and it had taken hours for them to realize he was gone. And now, Barbara wasn't answering her phone. Cassius ducked into a back alley and jumped, using a strand of goo to launch himself into the air before forming a set of wings. Once he had, he flew high, his eyes transforming into insect eyes and telescoping, allowing him to catch site of most of the others. He could see Rose and Cassandra pausing their search to stop a mugging, Tim pausing his search to take down a few Clowns who were brawling with Two-Face's thugs, denoted by their uniforms and masks being split down the center. Finally, he managed to catch sight of Stephanie, now an official member of Batman Inc. as Spoiler, and the newest member, Cissie King-Jones, who went by the moniker of Arrowette, stopping a jewelry store robbery. Cassius wasn't entirely sure why Cissie was in Batman Inc. She didn't know their identities, she had never been to the Batcave, and she was supposed to be Green Arrow's current protégé, hence the name, the red costume that was styled after Artemis's, and her skill with a bow. And yet, here she was.

Cassius passed behind a building and shifted his eyes back, flying toward Barbara's house, he and Nightwing both having volunteered to check on her at her house while the others searched for Joker, though Nightwing had been on the opposite side of her home from Cassius when they volunteered. Finally, the building came into view and he swooped down, retracting his wings and landing on the street in front of the building, running into it and up to her door, only to find Nightwing inside, desperately trying to slow the bleeding from a gunshot wound to her gut and holding her nude body in his arms.

"I'm going to fucking kill him!" Nightwing snarled.

"Priorities," Cassius said, pulling out his phone. "You stay with her to protect her." He raised a hand to his ear. "He got to Barbara. Gunshot to the lower abdomen. She's alive, and I'm calling the police now."

No one answered, but he payed that no mind. They'd all been busy, and God knew where Batman was. He'd be the one to find Joker. He was _always_ the one to find Joker. After about three minutes, the police, including Barbara's father, the commissioner, Jim Gordon, reached the house with an ambulance and the EMTs sprinted up the stairs. Nightwing made himself scarce, and Cassius took his normal form before they arrived, having introduced himself to Jim for convenience in case he had to drop by their house for something.

"What happened?" Jim demanded.

"I don't know!" Cassius said, making himself worried, not a hard task at the moment. "I was passing by on a late-night snack run and heard a gunshot, so I came up here and found her like this!"

One of the officers took a quick statement from him as Barbara was wheeled away on a stretcher, Jim going with her. Once everything was done and Cassius was allowed to leave, he reformed his armor and wings and took off, reaching the hospital at the same time as Dick, Cassandra, and Rose, all three now in civilian clothes. Cassius retracted his armor and they ran inside, being directed to a waiting room, then sitting there and waiting for her to get out of the operating room.

"I got Joker," Batman said, several hours later. "I'll be there shortly."

"We're still waiting," Cassius said under his breath, not drawing attention to them.

"Understood," Batman said, then went silent.

* * *

Cassius grumbled, rolling onto his side, ignoring the two sets of hands shaking him. Two soft voices laughed and shook him again. Again he grumbled unintelligibly. The hands rolled him onto his back and a pair of soft lips joined to his own, drawing him unwillingly into consciousness. He sighed, recognizing the taste and feel of Rose's kiss even before he was fully conscious, and submitted partially, kissing her back for several long seconds before pressing up on her shoulder, Rose obediently sitting up out of the way. Cassius sat yup, yawning and stretching before turning to Cassandra and capturing her lips as well, Cassandra instantly returning it.

"You're both lucky it's Christmas," Cassius said as he pulled away.

"Exactly, so get up!" Rose laughed.

Cassius sighed, dragging himself out of bed and yawning again, stretching. The girls laughed and shoved him to his feet and he smiled, raising his hands in surrender. The three of them quickly went to the bathroom to brush their teeth before heading to the Batcave, then using the Zeta-tube to reach the Watchtower, heading for the tree, which was in the briefing room this year. Most of the others had gathered, and as soon as Cassius was in the room, he extended an arm, forming half a dozen goo benches for them all to sit in, everyone picking a seat. As usual, Cassius passed out the Christmas stockings first, then waited for everyone to get done with them while he ate a long stick of soft caramel lightly dusted with powdered sugar and filled with vanilla frosting, called a Cow Tale. Once everyone was done picking a snack from the stockings' candy and sorting through what else they got, Cassius began to pass out presents. He smiled as Cassandra hugged his present to her, another book on learning to speak with a speech impediment, which was basically what she had, given that even though she knew most of the vocabulary, her brain simply couldn't make her say the words. Rose, on the other hand, squealed in delight as she held up her newly-repaired necklace. Hers had broken off during a sparring match, so he'd had it remade. He'd tried to argue that he could do that just because and also give her another present, but she was having none of it.

Once presents were done, they moved to the kitchen, where one of Cassius's clones was making hot chocolate and cinnamon buns, as was tradition. Everyone grabbed a cup and Cassius's clone brought the plate of buns into the living room, Cassius himself grabbing Rose and Cassandra's personal plates, as was also tradition, along with all three of their cups of hot chocolate. Wally turned on the Christmas movies and everyone found a seat, Cassius reforming some of the goo seating for anyone that needed it, though he and his girls remained where they were. Cassius glanced around at the various couples seated around the room. Tim and Wonder Girl were still together, Wally and Artemis were still together, and apparently were considering marriage and a child, Connor and Megan were still together, after having reconciled and decided to try again after they stopped the MFDs, Nightwing and the now wheelchair-bound Barbara were an official couple, finally, and Beast Boy was now dating Queen Perdita of Vlatava, of all people.

Except, most of those couples weren't actually in the Team. Megan was the new leader of the Team, and had changed her appearance to bald with more pronounced facial features and pale blue skin, following Kaldur's promotion to the Justice League, now with the mantle of Aquaman, since King Orin retired. Connor, on the other hand, had retired, and now lived a quiet life fixing vehicles for money when he felt inclined to and keeping his and Megan's house warm for when she came home between missions. Artemis and Wally were still enjoying their retirement. Nightwing had been on a leave of absence from the Team since the MFDs, though he still operated as Nightwing, and Barbara was now officially not on the Team due to her inability to walk, but unofficially was going by the codename Oracle and worked as all things tech specialist for Batman Incorporated. But probably the biggest surprise was Beast Boy. He'd met and started a relationship with Queen Perdita sometime after the MFDs incident when she'd shown up to thank Wally for helping save the world, being a personal friend of his. Shortly after that, Beast Boy's stepfather, who'd never been a part of Beast Boy's life, showed up and tried to claim parental rights. Megan had offered to fight for custody on those same grounds, but Beast Boy had chosen to leave the Team to live with his stepfather, even though everyone knew he wanted to exploit Beast Boy's fame as Queen Perdita's boyfriend. After leaving the Team, however, he had hit it big, his fame getting him a job as an actor, and the star of a popular TV show about a crew of space voyagers with their shape-shifting captain. With his ever-increasing fame, and as one of the first publicly open meta-humans, and used his fame to put out public service announcements about missing teens who were taken in recently-formed meta-human-trafficking rings.

One trafficking ring in particular was proving to be highly efficient and dangerous. It was a run by a mysterious criminal called Barron Bedlam, and they had only had minimal success in tracking them down, which infuriated both Cassius and Dick.

"Oh, Cassius," Megan's voice all but sang, pulling Cassius from his thoughts.

He looked around at her, and she pointed over him. He looked up and saw a piece of mistletoe hovering in the air above him. "Remind me again why I'm a part of this team?"

"Because we're the only people who'll be your friends," Connor said, smirking. "Now, forgive me if I'm wrong, but isn't there some Earth tradition about mistletoe?"

Cassius rolled his eyes and formed himself a second upper body, both of him pulling one of the girls into a kiss, everyone in the room cat-calling, wolf-whistling, or simply cheering. The three of them ignored them, holding their kiss for nearly a minute before finally separating. Cassius reabsorbed his second upper body and both girls hugged him.

"I can't wait until you're finally ready," Rose said, Cassandra nodding in agreement.

"Soon," Cassius promised, giving them both a light squeeze.

* * *

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	63. Chapter 63

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Desperation

"So, what are these?" Cassius asked Strange as he stared at the contact lenses and earpieces.

"I call them Darkwear," Strange said. "The earpieces are linked to the contacts, which have basically every function of the Watchtower's computer besides Zeta-tubes, for obvious reasons."

"How's it work?" Cassius asked, putting his set of prototypes on, Cassandra and Rose both doing the same with theirs, the three of them having been chosen as testers.

Strange spent an hour walking them all through the functions, including a hands-free messaging system Cassandra could use to communicate without needing to try to speak or use sign language. After that, they spent about another hour getting the hang of controlling everything. Once they felt confident in their use, they took a Zeta-tube to the Batcave, then headed out into Gotham for a test run, Barbara monitoring them from the Batcave's computer to make sure the link function worked.

"So, Oracle, anything good for us to test these with?" Cassius asked.

"You could try advanced Hide-and-Seek," Oracle suggested.

"Perfect!" Cassius grinned, landing on a rooftop and releasing the girls. "I'll seek first. You two take off."

He closed his eyes and both took off instantly. After a few minutes, he opened his eyes again, focusing on the left side of his vision. Four icons were aligned there. At the top was his own, a bright green background with a splatter of black goo in the middle. When in use, the contacts turned the color of their icon's backgrounds, so his would be green, matching his form's normal eye color. Next was Cassandra's. A black background with a white katana diagonally up and left through it. Rose's was a circle with the same color scheme as her mask, including the white right eye. Her one contact lit up orange when in use. Oracle's icon was violet with an eye, however, it was currently just the Batcave's computer, not another set of Darkwear contacts.

"Alright," Cassius said. "Let's get started."

He turned toward the tracking signal for Rose and took off, flying quickly. As he landed in front of a small building abandoned, he blinked, his contacts' x-ray vision activating. The building turned a transparent grey, any metal turned a bright, clear white, as did the skeletons of people in the buildings around the one he was about to walk into. He smiled, walking through the front door and looking around until he found a skeleton crouched on the third floor. He made his way up the stairs quickly, then opened the last door as his x-ray vision deactivated and knelt, smirking as she glared at him from under a table.

"You better not have looked at me naked," Rose said.

"Relax," Cassius said. "All I could see was your skeleton. The x-ray and tracking software work perfectly, by the way, Oracle."

"Good," Oracle replied. "Now...hold on. Orphan's offline."

Cassius focused on the icons and frowned. He walked outside with Rose and used the contacts' tracker to find the last location hers had been transmitting. He picked Rose up and they flew to the location, landing and both looking around. After a few moments, a small glowing blue outline appeared around several small spots on the roof and his vision zoomed in on it. A small box of coding appeared beside the spots in his vision, the coding speeding up the text box before it was replaced by three images. A strand of DNA, a small text box for a description of the blood's contents, and an image of Cassandra.

"Cassius..." Rose trailed off.

"Go home, Rose," Cassius said.

"What!?" Rose asked. "No way! I'm going to help-"

"Go home!" Cassius snapped. "Rose, please. I'm going to be using my old skill set and personality for a while, and I don't want you to see me like that. Please."

Rose hesitated before nodding. "Okay. Bring her home safe."

"I will," Cassius nodded.

Rose left and Cassius waited three minutes before taking a long breath and shifting himself into his first normal appearance as Void. He looked around slowly, his contacts picking up traces of dirt, hairs, more blood, and finally another spot on the ground that it read as a toxic chemical. After a few seconds of analyzing, it had found its source, ACE Chemicals Processing Plant. Cassius began to fly toward it, only for a harpoon to spear him through the chest, the rope tied to it dragging him tot he ground. He stood, ripping it out and healing instantly, looking around at the Clowns around him.

"Void, do _not_ kill them!" Barbara snapped, just as Cassandra's contacts came back online, along with a box containing a video feed from the micro-cameras in her contacts, allowing them to see what she did.

"My, what a little cutie you are!" Joker was grinning wickedly. "What was the name? Orphan? I remember you. You were there to help those pesky sidekicks stop me when I was controlling the plant attacks with the rest of the Injustice League."

Cassius exploded forward, beginning to drop Clowns rapidly, all of them swarming him, stopping him from being able to take off again and keeping him from making any decent headway toward the chemical plant.

"You were that goo freak's precious little girl," Joker continued, sharpening a knife. "You weren't that great a fighter, though. Last time or this time. I heard you could read body language." He turned to her. "It's probably hard to read mine with so many different personalities all trying to talk at once. But here. Let's see if you can read what I'm going to do to you next."

The screen vanished just as Joker reached toward her with the knife. Instantly, Cassius roared in rage, hundreds of spheres of goo exploding off of him and shattering bones, knocking all of the Clowns out but not killing any. Then, Cassius retracted the goo and exploded off the ground, his eight wings beating in a wave, sending him hurtling toward the plant. Before he could reach it, however, Nemesis exploded down on his back, sending him crashing down in the street.

"What a perfect opportunity to make you suffer!" Nemesis grinned, leaping backward as goo spikes erupted from Cassius's back. "All I have to do is stall you, and you lose one of the two loves of your current life!" He laughed. "It's perfect!"

Cassius stood, shaking with rage as Cassandra's screams echoed over her communicator. Then, Cassius roared, sounding every bit the monster he knew he'd have to be in order to defeat Nemesis in time to save Cassandra. He exploded forward, his eight fists exploding into Nemesis's own fists and forearms like a machine gun, only for Nemesis to still be able to counter every few seconds, every punch or kick rocking Cassius back a step. Finally, he managed to slam a solid punch into Nemesis's face, sending him staggering away before swiping his arms, a dozen goo spikes impaling Nemesis through the back. Then, Cassius stepped backward out of the goo, leaving two clones' worth of it as he turned, forming his wings and exploding into the air as his goo clone continued to fight Nemesis as he recovered from being impaled. Cassius pulled up Cassandra's vital signs and growled in fury and frustration. Her heartrate and brain waves were spiking sharply from pain, her breathing was erratic, and her body temperature was far lower than it should be. The window also read that she had some kind of drug in her system, but it couldn't identify it, and at the moment, he didn't care.

"This has been fun," Joker's voice said over the communicator, just barely carrying over successfully. "But it's time to go. I'll make it quick, though. I don't have much time to have fun with you like I did the last Robin."

Cassius activated his contacts' x-ray vision and found Cassandra and Joke. Cassandra was chained to a metal table set on its end, and Joker was in front of her, holding a crowbar. Just as he drew it back, Cassius exploded through the wall, his x-ray vision deactivating as a wall of debris crashed into Joker, sending him ragdolling off the platform they were on, Joker spinning and plummeting into a vat of chemicals. Cassius sent a strand of goo into the chemicals and yanked him back out by the ankle, dangling him over it from the ceiling. Then, he turned back to Cassandra and gasped harshly, instantly shutting off his contacts.

"Cassius?" Barbara asked.

"I'm fine," Cassius said. "Send the police to ACE Chemicals to pick up Joker." He glanced at his clone as he landed in the hole Cassius had made, shaking his head. "Make sure they bring a sanitation crew. Joker took a dip in the chemicals."

"Is Cassandra okay?" Barbara asked.

"No," Cassius said, reabsorbing his clone. "She's not."

He stepped forward, quickly using his goo to open the locks on her wrists and ankles' shackles, taking her into his arms instantly. Cassandra sobbed into his chest, trembling and bleeding, fresh gashes covering most of her bare body. He glanced to the side, at a small tray lined with knives, some smooth, others jagged, one of them more Sawzall than knife, all of them bloody. Sitting beside the knives was Cassandra's locket and moonstone bracelet. He grabbed both, along with Orphan's ruined costume, absorbing them into his body before using a third arm to splash bleach from a jug nearby, which he could smell from Cassandra's body, over the blood all over, stopping the cops from identifying Cassandra's DNA, then finally flew out of the building. He flew to an apartment building where he had a safehouse, using goo to open the window and slipped inside with Cassandra, closing and locking the window behind them before hitting a button to close steel shutters over them before heading into the bathroom and setting Cassandra on the floor of the shower.

"I need to wash the bleach off of you and out of your injuries," Cassius said.

Cassandra nodded, gritting her teeth and clenching his hand tightly. He reached up and turned the water on and Cassandra began to scream through her teeth and sealed lips instantly, sobbing anew. He worked as quickly as he could before shutting the water off and pulling her into his arms, feeling her trembling as badly now as when he'd saved her.

"What'd he do to you?" Cassius asked.

"Drug...feel...more," Cassandra sobbed out, barely even managing those three words through her impediment and sobbing both.

Cassius nodded, pulling out a small thumb-drive-sized device to analyze samples more in-depth than his contacts could alone. He used it to collect some of her blood and put the cover on it, which would automatically start the Batcave computer analyzing it. "Barbara, can you tell me how to counteract the drug in her system?"

Barbara was silent for a few moments before responding. "It'll have to wear off. It should be done within an hour. I'm sorry. Don't give her any pain medication. I can't tell what it'll react with."

"Understood," Cassius said before turning off his ear pieces, also turning off Cassandra's. "Come on. I need to treat your wounds."

Cassandra began to tremble again at the prospect of even more pain, but nodded. Cassius carried her to the bed and pulled away, inspecting her injuries. It looked like most of the injuries were shallow, more for pain than damage, but with as many as there were, she was bleeding heavily, and all of them needed stitches. He sighed, gently laying her on her back on the bed, then sat beside her, stretching his arm over to grab the needle and thread. Cassandra tensed instantly, and he swallowed hard, steeling himself before beginning to stitch the first gash. Cassandra covered her mouth to muffle her screams and sobs as he worked. He was slow and as gentle as he could be, but it was not a fast process. She had gashes up and down the front and back of both legs, particularly the inside of her thighs, then all across her hips, abdomen, chest, arms, back, ass, and neck. Joker had, fortunately, avoided her face, because Cassius knew she wouldn't be able to handle that. She'd never admitted to it, but he'd seen her gazing at her scars from time to time with a look of shame. If her face had been scarred by Joker as well, Cassius was almost certain she'd have broken.

Finally, after nearly two hours, Cassius finished stitching the last of her gashes and sent a fresh blood sample he'd taken just before hand to Barbara as he turned on his earpiece. After a few seconds of silence, she reported that the drug had run its course and it was safe for him to give her painkillers. He thanked her and shut the earpiece off again before grabbing some high-strength pain pills and giving them to Cassandra with a glass of water. She took them and drank all of the water before Cassius gently pulled her into him. He rocked gently, stroking his hand over her hair as she cried. Finally, she reached up, kissing Cassius. He kissed her back instantly, but felt a desperate, hungry need from her. She pressed into him, clinging to him, and pulled his hands to her chest, whimpering in need, only for Cassius to pull away, holding her back by the shoulders.

"Please!" Cassandra cried, tears soaking her face. "Doesn't...need...mean...anything! Can...go back...waiting after! But...please!"

"Cassandra," Cassius said, his heart shattering in his chest as he cupped her cheeks, wiping her tears away futilely. "It could never be meaningless. Cassandra, I love you. I love you more than anything in the world, and I'm not going to push you away anymore, but I'm not ready for...I still need time before we do that. But I'm done making you wait. You've waited long enough."

"Really?" Cassandra asked, regaining some semblance of control over herself.

"Really," Cassius nodded. "I'm ready."

Cassandra let out a half-sob and mashed her lips to his, kissing him passionately, though he could feel that the hunger was gone. He returned the kiss in kind, holding her tightly, though being careful to avoid aggravating her injuries. After a few seconds, he turned, laying back on the bed, bringing her with him, pulling her on top of him. He felt her hunger start to return, but she kept it under control, not pushing him for more.

* * *

Cassius gently set Cassandra on her bed, kissing her again before straightening up. "I'll be in my room once you're dressed. Are you sure you don't want any help?"

Cassandra smiled and shook her head. "Okay."

Cassius nodded, kissing her one last time before leaving, closing the door behind himself before heading to his room. However, just as soon as he was in the door, it swung closed and a pair of hands shoved him. He spun, expecting an attack, only to relax as he saw Rose, just in time for his legs to hit the bed, knocking him backward onto it. Rose sprang forward, climbing on top of him instantly, glaring down at him.

"I don't know whether to be excited that you're ready to be open about the relationship we've been in for years now, or offended that you didn't even wait to get back and let me join in when you fuck Cassandra the first time," Rose said.

"When I..." he blinked then shoo his head. "No, that's not-"

"I suppose I can understand, since Joker had her, but still," Rose continued, then grinned. "Still, I'm not going to let her get ahead."

"Rose, we didn't-"

Rose cut him off by mashing her lips to his, her tongue slipping into him mouth instantly and her hunger flooding him. he reached up to push her away, but she angled her body to make his hands land on her breasts, then moaned, rolling into him. He sucked in a breath as her hand dove into his pants, before regaining his composure. Just as he caught her hand and moved to pull it out of his pants, also pushing upward on her shoulder with the other hand, the door opened. Rose sat up, looking back in surprise, only to sigh as she saw Cassandra. However, Cassius used her distraction to slip out from under her, sighing and taking Cassandra's hand, guiding her into the room and closing the door.

"I'm sorry," Cassius said.

Cassandra shook her head. "You...try stop. Okay."

He nodded giving her a quick kiss.

"What, so only she's good enough?" Rose asked.

"As I was trying to tell you, Rose, we didn't have sex," Cassius said. "I'm not ready to go that far yet, but yes, I _am_ ready to openly be with you both. And regardless of whether or not I'm ready to go that far, right now, I wouldn't even if Cassandra begged me to. She just got done being tortured by Joker. She's too badly wounded. That's why I stopped her when she tried as well."

"Wait, what?" Rose asked.

Cassandra lifted her shirt, displaying the bandages covering her entire torso. "Forty seven."

"Oh my God!" Rose gasped. "Are you okay!?"

Cassandra nodded and signed, "I'll heal."

Rose sighed nodding. "I'm sorry. I should have stayed with you when we went to hide."

"That wouldn't have tested the Darkwear, and then Joker would have captured you both," Cassius said. "I'm happy enough just being able to still hold you both."

Rose smiled and nodded, walking over and wrapping her arms around them both. "I'm sorry. I should have listened to what you were saying, and I should have been concerned with Cassandra's safety first and foremost."

"It's alright," Cassius said. "Just try to to better."

Rose nodded. "I promise to wait until you're ready."

Cassius nodded and kissed her, Rose kissing him back happily. After a few seconds, she pulled away, then turned, gently pulling Cassandra into a kiss, Cassandra sighing and kissing Rose as passionately as she kissed Cassius. Rose sighed contentedly, returning it in kind before pulling away and allowing Cassandra to kiss Cassius. Once Cassius pulled away, Rose gave Cassandra a concerned look again.

"You're sure you're okay?" Rose asked.

Cassandra nodded, smiling. "Cassius save. No need...worry or...afraid."

Rose smiled and nodded. "Alright. As long as you're sure. Now let's go to bed. It's later."

"Alright," Cassius nodded. "Go get changed into pajamas, Rose. We'll save you a spot."

Rose snorted. "Change into pajamas. That's funny."

Cassius frowned, until Rose dropped her costume to the ground, leaving herself in just a pair of panties.

"We're openly together now, so I don't have to wear pajamas to bed anymore," Rose said. "And you can't say anything about it."

Cassius groaned, holding a hand to his face. "You're going to be the death of me, Rose."

Rose grinned and kissed him before tugging both of their hands lightly, pulling them to bed before Cassius settled in to not be able to sleep for hours. He was most definitely not disappointed.

* * *

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	64. Chapter 64

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Split

"Excellent work, Alpha Squad, textbook op," Megan smiled, looking over at Cassandra and Rose's team, Cassius's own having not gone well under Tim's leadership. "Gamma...you could learn something from-"

"Recognize Steel, Three-Six, Black Lightning, Two-Three," the computer announced as the two heroes stepped out of the Zeta-tube.

One was a behemoth made of his namesake with a red cape and a Superman emblem on his chest and the other a middle-aged African-American with a black and blue lightning-themed costume, a goatee, and a black mask over his eyes. Currently, though, he was in civilian clothes, and had been since he'd tried to fight a lava monster on Rann a few days ago and accidentally killed it because it was a human girl of fourteen years old forcefully turned into a meta-human and sent to fight for Darkseid, who was trying to take over Rann. Cassius suspected the girl had been a victim of Bedlam's trafficking ring, but had no proof yet.

"Where are they?" Black Lightning asked.

"Already in the conference room," Megan said. "Most of them, anyway."

"Why isn't Lightning in costume?" Wonder Girl asked, most of the team not knowing about Rann.

"Well that's everyone but the League's fearless leader," Bart said.

"Recognized Aquaman, Two-Seven," the computer announced as Kaldur arrived.

"And speak of the devil," Bart said.

Kaldur had updated his costume in accordance with his promotion. He now had greenish-gold plating over his shoulders and arms, as well as around his neck, the armor having slits for his gills and having his upper arms plated on the outside only, Cassius's assassin-trained brain once again pointing out how ineffective it made the armor. He also had a set of new, upgraded Water Bearers, which were more blocky than his last set.

"They're, uh, all waiting for you," Connor said, still coming to the briefings, despite not being a member of the Team.

Kaldur sighed. "I am not looking forward to this," Kaldur said. "M'gann, as leader of the Team, you are invited to observe."

"And, do I _want_ to observe?" Megan asked.

"Probably not, but please come," Kaldur said. "I believe I could use the morale support."

"You have that, Kaldur," Megan said. "Always."

"Go," Cassius said, stepping forward. "I can finish the briefing."

"Alright," Megan nodded, using Telepathy to quickly show him what she observed of both squad's mistakes.

"Got it," Cassius nodded. "See you in a couple hours."

"I hope not," Kaldur said. "Garth and La'gaan wish to take me on yet another blind dating session."

Cassius snorted. "I keep telling you, just tell them you're dating a nice surface world girl they'll never meet."

Kaldur sighed. "I believe part of me is hoping they will be successful this time. I must go."

"Have fun," Cassius grinned as he and Megan walked away, Megan giving him a deadpan look before turning back to the front as she passed through the door. "Alright, now then. Ass chewing time."

The others, minus Cassandra and Rose, all grimaced, knowing full well that Cassius was the most nitpicky and harsh when it came to judging successes or failures. About thirty minutes later, Cassius had just finished when the door to the conference room opened, Batman and Green Arrow walking out of it. Cassius frowned. Why were they leaving the meeting so soon? And alone? He looked to the rest of Batman Inc and instantly realized something was wrong. Cassandra, wearing in a replacement black costume that was all black and similar to her last but with a solid helmet-like mask and a cape, though the mask was currently off, and Rose looked as confused as him, but Tim's expression showed that he knew exactly what was happening, and Cassius could tell by the look in Stephanie and Cissie's eyes that they did too.

"It's time," Batman said, those three walking over to the two Leaguers instantly.

"Time?" Wonder Girl asked. "Time for what?"

Tim slipped his hand out of hers, walking away.

"Void, Orphan, Ravager, we're leaving," Batman said flatly.

"What?" Cassius asked. "Why?"

"Because I said so," Batman said. "Now you're either coming with us, or you're no longer a part of Batman Incorporated. That is the only thing you will not be a part of." He made eye contact with Cassandra to reassure her she wouldn't be disowned.

Cassius looked to Rose and Cassandra.

"I'm with you," Rose said.

"Stephanie," Cassandra said.

"Sorry, Cassy," Stephanie said. "I'm going."

Cassandra looked to Cassius.

"It's up to you," Cassius said. "Even if we stay and they go, it doesn't mean you can't be friends with her. She just won't be going on missions with us. But if you want to go, Rose and I will go with you."

Cassandra was silent for a second before taking his hand and shaking her head. "Stay."

"Very well," Batman said. "We're leaving."

The others all left just as Black Lightning walked over, apparently having also resigned.

"Join us Jeff," Batman said. "I think we want the same things."

"The same things?" Lightning scoffed. "Really? Batman, I just resigned from the Justice league! At least _their_ leaders were elected democratically. I want nothing to do with...Batman Incorporated. The truth is, I don't trust you. Especially after what you pulled in there today."

"What?" Bart asked. "What did he pull?"

"Later," Cassius said. "I'm sure we'll find out."

"I'm sorry Virgil," Black Lightning said to his protégé. "Maybe you can find a new mentor. One who's...less damaged."

"Will someone please tell me what's going on!" Bart said.

"Enough, Bart," Cassius said. "Just stay quiet for a minute."

"Perhaps Dick had the right idea," Kaldur sighed.

"Was it just them?" Cassius asked in a low voice, walking over.

Kaldur shook his head, sighing, keeping his voice low. "Half the League. Besides those two, there was also Katana, Batwoman, Hardware, and Plastic Man. They all planned it out beforehand. Except for Jeff. He is retiring because of Rann."

Cassius shook his head. "I'm sorry."

Kaldur shook his head. "I'll need to talk to you later."

Cassius nodded. "Well, at least the meeting's over in time for your date."

Kaldur grimaced. "I believe I may take your advice about the surface world girl after all."

Cassius chuckled.

"Speaking of which," Kaldur said. "How are things going?"

"Oh, the usual," Cassius smiled. "Rose pushes for more, Cassy's happy enjoying what she has."

Kaldur nodded. "You are incredibly lucky. For many, many reasons. Be good to them."

"You're telling me," Cassius chuckled. "I couldn't get rid of them if I tried. In fact, I did try, and look how that worked out."

"Yes," Kaldur grinned. "You tried to get rid of them and ended up in an unofficial relationship with them both instead."

Cassius chuckled just as he watch beeped. "We'll have to have our chat another day. I have a date to get to."

"One that doesn't involve your girlfriends?" Kaldur asked.

"Well, this one likes to play rough," Cassius shrugged. "I'll see you soon."

Kaldur nodded and Cassius gave Cassandra and Rose a kiss goodbye before taking the Zeta-tube to Moscow. A couple hours later, he and Nightwing were overlooking a factory where currently being used by Bedlam for meta-human trafficking. At least, according to their intel. They'd raided a total of four potential locations, which was how they found out he was using Tar, but it had been tainted by blood and they couldn't get a good analysis of it.

"You ready?" Nightwing asked, putting his Darkwear mask on to complete the suit, which was a completely plain, black set of formfitting armor and a mask based on Cassius's own armor preference, along with the contacts and earpieces.

"I hope there's some Tar here for me to absorb," Cassius said. "I'm do for a boost, but I can't collect that clone I left at the manor for another day or two."

Nightwing chuckled. "Well, if there is, let me get a sample analysis first."

Cassius nodded and flew them both to the factory before they moved to the skylight. Then, they slipped in, quickly beating down the handful of thugs inside. There were boxes stacked all over, some of which Cassius could see children in with his contacts' x-ray vision, a couple of pods similar to the ones Cadmus had used so long ago, one of which still had tar in it, and and about six guards, all now unconscious.

"Intel was on the money, Oracle," Nightwing said.

"Of course," Barbara said as Cassius freed the children, telling them to run in Russian.

"It's definitely another meta-human trafficking lab," Nightwing said, taking a sample of the Tar, then nodding to Cassius, who absorbed the rest, including the vat of Tar waiting to be used behind the pods.

"But is it Bedlam?" Barbara asked.

"Pods filled with what I can confirm is Tar," Cassius said, grimacing. "Not very good Tar, though."

"Personal preference aside, he uses that Tar to turn kids into full-on meta-humans," Barbara said. "Assuming the kids survive the process."

"Yeah, drowning in black goo that burns your body isn't all it's cracked up to be," Cassius said. "Go figure."

"Let's shut 'em down," Nightwing said, hurling his newly upgraded explosive disks into the crates, pods, computers, and support struts.

"Really?" Cassius asked. "I'm still in the building."

Nightwing shrugged and they both ran out of the building, Cassius dropping the thugs in the street as he leapt to a building across from it less than a second before the entire factory turned into a fireball.

"Nightwing?" Barbara asked worriedly. "Nightwing, do you read!?"

"Worried about me?" Nightwing asked.

"Worried you didn't get a sample of the Tar before you blew the place," Barbara said.

"Way ahead of you," Nightwing said, transferring the sample analysis to her. "Sending data now."

"Got it," Barbara said.

"I'm fine too, by the way," Cassius smirked.

"Oh I'm so relieved!" Barbara said dramatically.

"Mhm, sure you are," Cassius said. "Just remember, if I die, you have to tell Cassandra and Rose, since you're mission control."

"Good point," Barbara said. "Nightwing, give him the Tar as an apology."

"Oh yay," Cassius smirked as he absorbed the Tar sample. "As much Tar as I hock as a loogie. you're so thoughtful."

"You're welcome," Barbara said cheerfully. "So, this is crash."

"Hey now, Bart," Cassius said. "Put Barbara back on the phone."

"Oh, sorry," Barbara said. "I guess I _won't_ tell you that I got a solid lead of the source of the Tar."

"You can tell me," Nightwing said. "I'll listen to anything you want to say."

"The Tar contains a clay only found in one place," Barbara said. "Markovia."

"Then Markovia, here we come," Nightwing said, taking his mask off.

Just then, Cassandra's icon appeared and she sent a message. "Rose wants pizza tonight. When will you be home?"

Cassius chuckled, sending a silent message back, he, Cassandra, and Rose being the only three that used that function. "About thirty minutes or so. Go ahead and get changed. Oh, and make sure you and Rose have a dress ready each. Something classy. Alfred can help."

"Okay," Cassandra messaged. "Love you."

"Love you too," Cassius messaged back.

"Dinner plans?" Nightwing guessed.

"Yup," Cassius smiled. "We should get going."

Nightwing grinned, nodding and they both headed for the nearest Zeta-tube.

* * *

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	65. Chapter 65

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Trafficking

Cassius looked around at the coronation reception. He, Cassandra, and Rose had all slipped into Markovia by sea using Cassius's goo to hide from sonar and satellites. Once they were near the palace, he shifted into a tuxedo and escorted the two to the coronation, meeting up with Dick and Artemis there. Besides the two of them, they were also joined by Connor and Jeff, though Jeff had only barely agreed, and Megan and Wally had both been less than pleased to have their significant others going on a mission again, Artemis even having had to leave her engagement ring with Wally with a promise to call him the minute things went south.

Cassius glanced first at Artemis, checking to make sure none of her concealed weapons, that she refused to leave behind, were showing. Her dark blue dress fell nearly to the ground and had a slit on the left side up to her mid-thigh. Since her concealed crossbow was on the right, it was perfectly hidden. Cassius's eyes shifted to Rose next. She had on a black dress which fell to mid-calf on the left side, her knee on the right, and a "V" neckline low enough to show her already considerable cleavage, her necklace catching the light just below her collarbone and her moonstone bracelet on her right wrist. She had an inch-thick, white, cloth belt around her waist with a small bow on the right side and the ends falling to about mid-thigh on the right side. Cassius was pretty sure it was maybe a little too much for the mood of the coronation, but she looked beautiful, so he wouldn't complain. She also had one of her liquid metal swords hidden on her left thigh incase of a surprise appearance by Nemesis, who they hadn't seen since Joker abducted Cassandra almost four months ago. Finally, Cassius's eyes moved to Cassandra. She had on a plain dark blue dress that fell to mid-thigh and had the front up to her collar, the back open, and no sleeves. Unlike Rose, she had foregone weapons, so instead, Cassius had absorbed her liquid metal sword and her batarangs into his body for her if she needed them.

"Not exactly a wild crowd," Artemis said as she and Dick reached the desert table where Cassius was getting the girls some snacks.

"Hard to feel the aster when both your parents have just been murdered," Dick said. "Trust me."

"I could liven things up," Cassius offered in a serious tone, all four of the others present rolling their eyes.

"Down boy," Artemis said. "Save it for _after_ things go wrong."

Cassius smirked. "Glad to know you have faith in us."

Artemis shrugged. "We have a record." She glanced at the two Markovian princes, Gregor and Brion Markov, her Darkwear contacts lighting up gold. "Do you really think the two princes could have had something to do with their own parents deaths?"

"I hope not, but we shouldn't make assumptions," Dick said, looking around and stopping on Doctor Simon Ecks, their prime suspect. "Honestly, though, there are more promising suspects here. That's Doctor Simon Ecks, a world-renown geneticist who, for some reason, has taken a low-paying job at the Markovian Children's hospital."

"Maybe he just likes kids," Artemis said.

Dick was silent for a second. "Yeah, you're probably right."

"Really?" Artemis asked. "I was kinda joking."

"Dude," Cassius smirked. "Really. Silent messaging is a thing. You don't have to say all of it. Trust me, I'll be able to read your replies just as well if it's silent."

"What reply?" Artemis asked.

"I said Wally's probably going to chew him out for recruiting you when we get back," Cassius said.

"Yeah, probably," Artemis said. "As for silent messaging, I think you three are the only ones who can make it work reliably."

"Anyway," Dick said. "The fatality rate at that hospital is way above the norm."

"Eyes on the dinner date?" Cassius asked as his contacts identified her. "Doctor Helga Jace. Personal Physician to the Royal Family."

"Your eyes better not be on the dinner date," Rose said.

"Your eyes can stay on us, thank you very much," Cassandra messaged.

Cassius smiled and shook his head.

"There's no indication she has the training for meta work, but you never know," Dick said.

"I didn't mean that," Cassius said. "Before she disappeared, Princess Tara would have had to be tested to know if she was a suitable test subject. It'd be easy for the personal physician to do it."

"It's possible," Dick said. "But most trafficking groups kidnap before testing, especially Bedlam."

Just then, the head of Markovia's military walked over to the princes.

"That's Baron Frederick DeLamb, the late queen's brother," Dick said. "Tomorrow, when Gregor's crowned king, Uncle Freddy becomes Regent until Gregor turns eighteen."

Artemis scoffed. "There's motive, for either of them."

"Or both," Dick said.

"Uh, I just had a thought," Cassius said. "What if Bedlam's not the actual name."

"We already figured that," Artemis said.

"Did you figure this?" Cassius asked, messaging everyone, including Barbara, "DeLamb," then "beDLam," just below it, then "Bedlam."

"Holy shit," Artemis said.

"An anagram," Dick said. "I never even thought of that."

"That's alright," Cassius said. "It's not like you're a detective or anything."

Dick rolled his eyes as Cassius took a sip of the glass of Champaign he'd been holding for a while.

"If Cassius is right, the base could be in the palace somewhere," Rose said.

"No, someone would have found it," Dick said.

"Under the hospital," Cassius said. "No one goes to the basement in a hospital."

"Good evening," DeLamb said, stepping up to a podium. "Less than twenty four hours ago, our own king Viktor, and my beloved sister, Queen Ilona, were ruthlessly assassinated. But tomorrow, we crown their first-born, my nephew Gregor, as our new king."

"Call me crazy, but I don't think DeLamb will give up his new Martial Law rule after a year to let Gregor have the throne," Cassius said quietly.

"Probably not," Dick agreed.

As the crowd began to clap as DeLamb introduced Gregor to speak, Gregor walked over, smiling. As he did, Brion walked away, dumping his Champaign on the ground.

"Prince Brion's clearly not with the program," Artemis said.

"Noted," Dick said. "But Ecks is still our lead suspect. And now DeLamb is up there too."

"Me and the girls can shadow Brion," Cassius offered.

"Not yet," Dick said.

"Nightwing," Connor's voice whispered through their earpieces. "We made the drop as planned. Your gear's in the north west corner of the Markovian National Cemetery."

"We'll head over to the Children's Hospital to check out its anomalous power usage," Jeff said.

"Roger that Lightning," Dick said, glancing at Cassius and the others. "I'm sending Ravager to back you up. Good luck."

Cassius and Rose both nodded and Cassius gave her hand a squeeze before she left.

"You owe me a kiss for luck," Rose messaged.

"I'll pay up after the mission," Cassius messaged back. He looked around as Ecks turned to leave, Brion turning to follow.

"Targets are scrambling," Dick said. "Cassius and will follow Ecks and the prince. You get our gear."

"Right," Artemis nodded. "I'll rendezvous ASAP."

"Be careful," Cassandra messaged.

"Always," Cassius smiled. "You too."

She nodded and squeezed his hand for a second before following Artemis away. Cassius and Dick turned to follow the prince, their training with Batman allowing them both to slip out without any trouble. Then, they took Dick's car, Dick taking a dirt road through the trees to keep Ecks from realizing they were being followed while Cassius used his Darkwear to monitor Ecks's car's location.

"Amateurs," Dick smirked as they got back on the road behind Ecks. "Artemis, they're heading straight for the children's hospital."

"We found a dead girl who was alive and made a shield to block an Apokolyptan whip," Cassandra messaged everyone.

Cassius glanced at Dick, who raised an eyebrow at him.

"A dead girl who was alive?" Dick asked.

"They were burying her, but all of a sudden she was trying to climb out of the pit," Artemis said. "And she doesn't talk."

"Back to square one," Cassius sighed. "Ravager, how's your end?"

Silence.

"Ravager?" Cassius asked. "Orphan, can you reach Ravager?"

"No," Cassandra messaged.

"They might be jammed," Dick said.

"Or she might be unconscious," Cassius said. "When we get to the hospital, I'm giving your suit an upgrade."

"Understood," Dick nodded.

As they reached the hospital, Dick raised a hand to his communicator.

"Lightning, S.B., you've got company incoming," Dick said. "Repeat, Nightwing to Lightning. Nightwing to Superboy, do you read?"

A bit of static returned this time. Cassius sighed. If they were trying to respond, and all three were silent, it probably meant they were jammed.

"I'm out," Rose messaged suddenly. "Lightning's unconscious and almost drowned. I got him out of the water and we're hidden. Superboy was captured by a lava meta-human called Plasmus, the same kind as Lightning accidentally killed on Rann. Vertigo is here, running Bedlam."

"Oh thank Christ," Cassius sighed. "Rose, I might kill you after I give you the kiss I owe you. Thanks for the heads up. We'll handle them."

"Artemis, divert to pick them up," Dick ordered.

"Roger that," Artemis said.

"Be careful," Cassandra messaged.

"Dick's fighting the lava monster," Cassius messaged back. "I'm breaking Vertigo."

Just then, Deck released a beetle drone, a small probe that was built into a small beetle that could fly around in any country in the world without anyone thinking anything of it, and which Barbara could control remotely. Cassius watched the video feed the drone was transmitting to him and Dick both. The drone followed them as far as the morgue, watching Ecks input a code on a number pad on the wall, then scan his eye and open a secret passage. The beetle flew into it, but the signal was lost the second the door closed. Cassius sighed.

"We'll be going radio silent as soon as we're inside," Cassius warned the others.

"We're going in," Dick said. Then, he stepped out of the car, Cassius enveloping him and forming into a second layer of his suit.

"Two hour time limit starts now," Cassius said.

"That's all you've been able to improve to since we started the Team?" Dick asked as he headed for the hospital.

"Would you like to try staying turned into goo for an hour and a half and see if your brain forgets how to process anything at all?" Cassius asked.

"Pass," Dick said.

"Then shut up," Cassius said. "Geez. Some brother you are."

"Admit it," Dick smirked. "I'm the best brother of all time."

"Just throwing this out there, but aren't you technically Rose and Cassandra's brother too?" Artemis asked.

"We don't talk about that," Cassius said.

"Technically speaking, Cassius was never formally adopted," Dick said. "Legally, he's in the clear. Morally, there are _so_ many things wrong with the entire situation."

"You know I have the power to grow spikes inward, right?" Cassius asked.

Dick chuckled, then got serious as he reached the hospital. "Artemis, you, Lightning, and Rose head back to Bedlam via the sewers."

"Roger that," Artemis said.

Dick paused outside the hospital's front door to take a breath, then headed inside.

* * *

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	66. Chapter 66

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

* * *

Bedlam

"I'm in, status?" Dick asked, immediately after Barbara had jumped him using the beetle drone and made him bump his head.

"We're two minutes out," Artemis reported.

"Roger," Dick said. "S.B.?"

Cassius, now formed into a secondary layer for his armor, which he'd changed into in seconds, tugged at Dick's torso lightly, getting him moving.

"Follow," Dick instructed the beetle drone, which beeped twice in response and drifted along behind them.

After a few seconds, they stopped behind a wall, listening in on what was going on inside.

"We're shutting this place down," Vertigo was saying. "Hurry up with the shipment."

"On it boss!" Vertigo's top henchman, apparently named Henchy, said. "Go!"

He and the other henchmen began to load up four pods as Dick moved the drone out where it could see, sending the video feed to Artemis and the others.

"Receiving video," Artemis said.

"Nightwing, stop this before they finish loading those kids," Jeff said.

Dick moved to a door off to the side. "Negative, those pods aren't going anywhere fast on rails. I need to locate S.B. and the prince first."

"Activate the spy gear we planted," Jeff suggested. "Might help you find them."

"Might, if they weren't in a thousand pieces," Dick said, stopping beside a window and peeking through. "Got eyes on Ecks and...huh. Dr. Helga Jace. Good call. They've got S.B. Unconscious. In a pod."

"Oh, he is _not_ going to like that," Artemis said.

"Nope," Dick agreed.

"I'll get the kids, you get S.B.," Cassius said. "And don't blow up my Tar."

Dick nodded and Cassius separated from him, travelling as a puddle in the shadows back to the first room, then to the Tar storage tank, seeping in through the cracks before assimilating all of it.

The pods containing Connor and Brion had their own Tar tank, but Cassius would get it later. He still had four pods to take the Tar out of and kids to free.

"Ready to move in," Artemis said.

"Ready," Cassius said.

"Hold up," Dick said. "Something's happening."

Cassius watched the feed Dick sent, Vertigo shouting at the two doctors.

"I just got off the phone with His Highness," Vertigo snarled. "He gave no orders for the podding and Tarring of a prince of the realm!"

"His Highness?" Dick said. "Gregor?"

"DeLamb," Cassius said. "As Regent, he'd have the title too."

"Right," Dick said.

"You lied to me!" Ecks shouted, pointing at Jace. "You said this was all done by the boss's command!"

"I had to!" Jace said. "His so-called Highness is out of control! The things he has made us do..." she shook her head. "Now we have someone with the power to stop him! To stop Bedlam!"

"You ignorant peasant," Vertigo said before beginning to blast Jace with his power.

"Dick, if we wait much longer, these kids are gone," Cassius said. "Now or never."

"The plan set in motion here far exceeds your shortsighted morality," Vertigo was saying. "To get what _I_ need, I _will_ deliver control of Markovia to him! And you will do nothing to interfere!"

"If Vertigo's helping DeLamb take Markovia..." Jeff began.

"It's a good bet DeLamb will help Vertigo take neighboring Vlatava in return," Artemis said. "Finally giving the count the kingdom he's always wanted."

"And both countries will wind up under the Light's dominion," Dick said.

"Nightwing, now or never!" Cassius hissed as the last pod was loaded.

"His Highness will be here any second to decide what to do with...all of you," Vertigo said.

"Dick!" Cassius hissed.

"Wait for my signal!" Dick hissed back.

"Nightwing, new arrival!" Artemis warned.

Cassius waited, his teeth clenched tightly. Finally, DeLamb walked through the door into the room with Brion and Connor.

"Well, if it isn't Baron Bedlam himself," Jace spat.

"Cassius, go!" Dick said. "Quiet as long as you can!"

Cassius slipped out of the Tar storage tank instantly, reforming his body and armor and launched himself across the room to the three henchmen present, drilling a punch into each of their faces, dropping them all instantly before sticking them to the ceiling with his goo and covering their mouths with more. Then, he turned, sprinting to the four tanks and scanning them with his contacts. No alarms. He extended a goo arm for each pod, pressing them to the seal in front of the tank and forcing a bit of his goo through into the Tar, absorbing it before forcing the pods open and catching the four students. Then he shot into the shadows, sitting them against the wall and leaving a clone with them.

"The kids are safe," Cassius said. "En route back to you."

"Look out!" Artemis shouted suddenly.

"What's going on?" Cassius asked.

"Plasmus is here!" Rose said. "We'll handle it! Deal with Vertigo and DeLamb!"

"Be careful," Cassius said, slipping silently under the door to the room Dick was in, reforming beside him. "Ready on you."

"Helga, this betrayal will cost you more than-" DeLamb was cut off by an explosion rocking the ground.

"What was that?" Cassius asked.

"Supercycle's clearing us a path out of the sewer so that we have room to fight," Rose said.

"Shall we?" Cassius asked.

"Let's," Dick nodded.

A moment later, an explosion went off behind them and DeLamb and Vertigo both ran to investigate, Cassius sensing his clone taking the four children toward the exit, away from the fight. He and Dick moved into the room where Ecks had been left to hold Jace at gunpoint and Dick knocked her out while Cassius set a hand on the Tar container. A moment later, several hole store open, the tar flowing out in several streams, winding around his arm up to his shoulder before sinking into his body.

"You are a meta-human!" Jace gasped.

"Sure am," Cassius nodded, looking toward the other room as he absorbed the last of the goo. "Wake S.B. up for me, will you? The others will need him to fight Plasmus."

Dick nodded and Cassius sprinted into the other room, As he arrived, Vertigo was running toward the exit, only for Cassius to catch his legs with a strand of goo, swinging him around into a wall and knocking him out. As he retracted it, DeLamb opened fire at him, only for Plasmus to roar, leaping at Cassius. Cassius launched himself out of the way, flipping onto Supercycle with the others just before it took off, flying back through the hole it had entered through, then dropping into the sewer. After a ways, they escaped the sewer and landed at the beach nearby where Cassius's clone was waiting with the eight children he'd rescued. He reabsorbed his clone and knelt beside the children, picking up a stack of round control chips the clone had found that looked a lot like Starro Tech, except that it didn't sink into the children's flesh.

"We've got the evidence we need to bring down DeLamb and all of Bedlam," Dick said. "Doctor Jace's testimony will seal the deal."

"We need to get these kids somewhere safe!" Jeff said.

"I agree," Cassius said. "Jeff, take Superbike and get them to Taos."

Jeff nodded just as Brion began to stir. The moment he saw Jace, he shouted in surprise and fear.

"You get away from me!" he snapped.

"Brion, please!" Jace said, setting a hand on his shoulder. "Calm-AH!"

She shouted in pain and yanked her now burned hand back as Brion moved to run. He dropped off of Superbike and looked around at them all.

"Who are you people!?" he demanded, just as his feet began to melt through the ground.

"You'll need to calm down," Cassius said. "Fear and anger make it harder to control your meta-human powers."

"What!?" Brion asked, trying to step forward, only to rapidly sink into the ground. "What is happening!?"

And then, he was gone.

"Brion!" Jace called out, dropping to the ground as the trail of raised, melted ground continued to move before Brion broke free, gasping for breath.

"Palidzi man!" Brion shouted. "Help me! Help me!"

"You must calm down!" Jace said, running over to him. "Your meta-gene has been activated! Your body is now manipulating geologic forces!"

"Make it stop!" Brion pleaded. "Make it stop!"

"The more you panic, the less control you'll have," Connor said, kneeling in front of him. "Focus on your breathing. Just focus on controlling your breath."

Slowly, Brion began to calm, though his breath still stuttered and staggered out of him and every inhale was a panicked gasp, and the trail of melted rock he'd left behind began to cool.

"Guys!" Dick said suddenly, his wrist computer's screen lighting up, displaying DeLamb beside a screen, which was currently displaying a podded Brion.

"This footage shows Prince Brion undergoing an illegal meta-gene activation!" DeLamb was saying. "This evidence irrefutably links Prince Markov to meta-human trafficking in Markovia! And, quite possibly, to the abduction of his own sister, Princess Tara!"

"Oh shit," Cassius sighed.

"And, given their stance against trafficking, Brion is most likely responsible for the assassinations of his own parents, King Viktor and Queen Ilona!"

"Lies!" Brion shrieked before turning to run back to the palace, only to melt into the ground again.

Cassius sighed. "Now he's done it. Well, time to go beat the shit out of Bedlam and expose him to the world."

"How?" Dick asked.

"Simple," Cassius said, holding up a thumb drive. "This recording I have of DeLamb walking into the facility and talking about not giving the order to pod Brion, and of Jace identifying him as Baron Bedlam."

"What...how?" Dick asked.

"I just downloaded the video feed from your contacts, then uploaded it to a thumb drive I made out of my goo," Cassius shrugged. "Haven't you figured out you can do that yet?"

Dick stared at him before shaking his head. "We'll have an in-depth talk about exactly what these contacts can and can't do later. Let's go!"

Just then, a Boom Tube opened off to the side, Vertigo, Plasmus, and Vertigo's three Apokolyptan-weapon-wielding henchmen all walking out of it.

"And he used a Fatherbox to track Supercycle," Artemis said.

"S.B., Void, Orphan, we'll protect the Doctor and the kids," Dick said. "You three go after Brion."

"Got it," Cassius said, ejecting Rose's second liquid metal sword from his back, Rose catching it and smiling as she drew the one she had as well, activating both.

"See you soon," Cassius said, sweeping Cassandra off her feet and forming his wings, flying away as Superboy leapt after them.

"Want your sword?" Cassius asked.

Cassandra shook her head. "Other."

Cassius extended Cassandra's utility belt from his chest and she took it, clipping it around her waist before tugging her mask down. Cassius retracted his own, kissing her for a moment before pulling away and reforming his mask, Cassandra doing the same. Then, he stopped to hover as they reached DeLamb, finding Brion already present. DeLamb's entire body was solid stone, and Brion was now entirely encased in lava with some rocks sticking out of it on his head and shoulders. Cassius and Cassandra landed in front of Brion, Cassius folding his now scaled, draconic wings up behind himself and ignoring the surprised and fearful gasps of those around him. Cassandra turned to DeLamb as Cassius turned to the prince, glancing at the massive obsidian formation behind him where he'd erupted from the ground, Cassius would guess.

"Brion, listen to me," Cassius said. "We need to leave. There's no good way out of this situation if you fight him, but there's a better way to handle this if we leave now. As a fellow meta, please, trust me. I know how you feel."

"And so our worst fears are confirmed!" DeLamb shouted as Superboy landed beside them, glancing at Cassius's wings and nodding once. "Prince Brion Markov, in league with Meta-Human assassins!"

"You're a meta-human as well!" Gregor shouted.

"I _had_ to become one!" DeLamb said. "To defend us against them!"

"Liar!" Brion shouted. "That's why _I_ did it! To defend my country from you!"

"Brion wait!" Cassius said, Connor catching the prince the moment he tried to charge. "If you can keep calm for a moment, I can prove you're innocent."

"I've already given proof!" DeLamb said. "Your lies will not help you!"

"You showed a video of Prince Brion in a pod," Cassius said. "I think this one will be more enlightening."

He hurled the thumb drive to the bodyguard beside Gregor and Gregor nodded. The bodyguard plugged it in and everyone watched the screen, including several news cameras, as Vertigo scolded Jace and Ecks for podding and tarring Brion, and Jace talked about trying to stop Bedlam. DeLamb shouted about lies instantly, but when he moved to try and stop the video, Cassius shot forward, slamming a wing into his gut and hurling him away.

"Shut up," Cassius said. "Enjoy the movie."

All attention returned to the screen as Vertigo said he'd be delivering Markovia to "His Highness." Then as he said His Highness would arrive any second. Finally, DeLamb arrived and Jace identified him as Bedlam, and DeLamb, in no uncertain terms, stated that he was in charge and had been planning to play Regent just long enough to take control of Markovia. The video ended and Gregor stared at DeLamb in fury, DeLamb breathing heavily from his own rage.

"You are a traitor!" Gregor shouted. "_You_ killed my parents! Guards, arrest my uncle for treason!"

"You won't be able to," Cassius said, flexing his wings behind himself as he, Cassandra, and Connor stepped forward. "He's a meta-human with a body made of stone. Allow us."

"Do it," Gregor nodded.

Before they could, however, Brion shrieked in rage, launching himself at DeLamb on a wave of lava, DeLamb diving out of the way. As he stood, Brion threw several punches, only for DeLamb to avoid them, beating Brion mercilessly before finally hurling him into a statue off to the side. Then, Cassius and Connor shot forward. Connor reached him first, drilling a fist into his gut before Cassius slammed a knee into his face as he doubled over. DeLamb staggered backward and Cassandra drilled a fist into the side of his head, now wearing a pair of promethium-titanium alloy knuckles he'd made for her and Rose both incase of a fight against something more solid than a person, like a Kryptonian, or a solid stone enemy. DeLamb staggered away just as Cassius reached him, spinning and throwing a feint punch. DeLamb leaned out of the way, only for Cassius's right wing to hit him, beginning to sweep across his face, blinding him. Then, his left foot swung up in a hook kick, connecting with DeLamb's jaw and throwing him aside, only for Connor to clothesline him, sending him crashing to the ground.

"You little pests!" DeLamb seethed. "I am the rightful ruler of this nation!"

"Sorry, Bedlam," Cassius said. "That's not how the royal bloodline works." He shot forward, leaping over a punch and slammed a dropkick into DeLamb's face, sending him crashing to the ground hard.

He began to stand, only for Connor's clasped fists to crash down on his head, shattering the ground but rendering DeLamb unconscious. Cassius looked around, grimacing as he saw the extend of the damage they'd done.

"Sorry about the damages," Cassius said.

"It is alright," Gregor said. "It can be repaired. Thank you for helping us apprehend my uncle."

"Your Highness, I feel I should warn you that your prisons do not have the ability to keep him detained," Cassius said. "If you would allow it, we may be able to help. We know a location that could keep him secured."

"I am glad you are safe, Brother," Brion said, the lava having cooled over his body, leaving a stone layer like a bodysuit, though with several gaps. As he took a step forward, however, the guards around the courtyard all aimed their guns at him. "What are you doing? DeLamb is the criminal, not me!"

"Your Highness!" Markovia's UN ambassador said, stepping up beside him. "Whatever the Baron's crimes, your brother _also_ has much to answer for here. And if I may say, Markovia has suffered enough at the hands of meta-humans!"

"Ambassador..." Gregor said.

"Please, listen to me, my prince," the ambassador said, setting a hand on Gregor's shoulder. "Your country needs a new beginning. A new king. A new leader. Now more than ever." He turned to glare at Brion, Gregor staring at the ground in silence.

Finally, Gregor sighed, walking over to Brion. "Brother, is what you said true? You went to the traffickers willingly in order to have your meta-gene activated."

"I...Yes, Brother, I did," Brion said. "I wished to acquire the power to defend my country, so that no one else would be taken as my sister was."

Gregor nodded. "I am sorry, Brother. I understand your reasoning, and I can sympathize, but you must leave Markovia."

Brion's head fell, but he nodded. "May I collect a few of my things?"

Gregor nodded and Brion walked into the palace. "Take care of him, please."

"We will," Connor said.

"Have you got him?" Cassius asked quietly. "I'm going to head back."

Connor nodded and Cassius turned, picking up Cassandra and taking off, flying back to the beach. Just as he arrived, he saw Jeff electrocuting Plasmus weakly, just enough to hurt it, but not enough to risk killing it. He dropped, landing beside Jeff.

"There should be a control chip on the back of its neck," he said.

Jeff nodded and blasted Plasmus again before running around behind it and blasting the chip.

"Ana," Plasmus said weakly, standing motionless for a moment before turning to Jeff.

"It's okay," Jeff said. "You're going to be okay."

Just then, one of the Ecks copies burst out of the smoke, moving to punch Jeff, only for Cassandra to deflect the punch. Cassius's goo wrapped around Cassandra, yanking her back just as a glob of lava hit Ecks in the side, narrowly missing Cassandra, and the copy disappeared in seconds. Plasmus walked over to them and grunted something and Jeff sighed.

"Man, I like it better when you're on our side," Jeff said.

Plasmus turned to look around just as the smoke cleared, all of the Ecks copies fading and Vertigo and Henchy leaving through a Boom Tube. Cassius sighed as Dick dragged the real Ecks over. Cassius walked over to stand in front of Plasmus and Plasmus looked down at his hands, roaring something in despair. Just as he did, however, Rose leapt into the air behind Plasmus just as a gunshot rang out, a bullet punching through Rose's abdomen and missing Plasmus by an inch. Jeff shocked the shotgun the farmer was holding instantly, knocking it out of the farmer's hands as Cassius caught Rose, using his goo to slow her bleeding.

"Dammit, Rose!" Cassius grumbled. "You just love to scare the shit out of me, don't you?"

"Just...making sure...you don't...leave," Rose said weakly, face contorted in pain as his goo filled the bullet wound, packing it and stopping her from bleeding internally.

"I swear," Cassius sighed. "Between the two of you, it's a wonder I don't have a dozen ulcers already."

He sighed as he finished ensuring her survival, then stood, looking to the farmer, who Jeff was shouting at, then turned to Plasmus, whose face, formed from breaks in a patch of molten rock, was curled into a look of fear.

"It's going to be okay," Cassius said, leaving Rose with Cassandra. "You'll be alright. Can you tell me your name?"

"Ot...to," Plasmus said.

"Otto," Cassius said. "Alright Otto. I'm going to tell you the secret of controlling your powers. You ready?"

Otto nodded.

"All you have to do is remain calm, and picture what you want them to do," Cassius said. "So if you want to be yourself again, just picture yourself as your normal body, focus hard on it, and keep yourself calm."

Otto nodded and his eyes narrowed in concentration. Then, slowly, the lava began to retract and cool, turning into black stone in the silhouette of a young boy before transforming back into a boy. Cassius formed his goo into a blanket for the boy to cover himself with, since his transformation had burned his clothes away, and Otto thanked him in Latvian. Cassius smiled and nodded, then looked to the Farmer, who was staring at Otto with wide eyes.

"I...I'm sorry!" the farmer said. "I didn't know! I...I didn't mean to hurt her. I didn't mean to shoot a kid. I thought-"

"We know," Cassius said. "Go home and don't tell anyone about this. She'll be just fine, so you didn't kill anyone."

The farmer nodded and turned, running away, and Cassius sighed.

"I'll tend to your wound properly once we get home," Cassius said.

Rose nodded and allowed Cassius to lift her into his arms just as Connor landed with Brion, one of Brion's arms over his shoulders and a large luggage case under Connor's other arm.

"Brion!" Jace gasped, running over to the crying prince.

"What happened?" Connor asked, staring at the blood coating Rose.

"Long story," Cassius said. "It's fine now."

"Nightwing," Artemis said softly. "What do we do now?"

"We'll take them back home," Cassius said. "For the moment, the kids should all go to Taos."

"You go, too?" Halo asked.

"Uh, no, I have a house somewhere else," Artemis said.

"I go?" Halo asked.

"Uh...sure," Artemis said. "Why not. I'm sure Wally won't mind. Much."

"And I'll take the prince with me," Connor said. "If he loses control, I think I can help him."

Dick nodded. "What about Otto? Taos?"

Otto's hand took Cassius's instantly, and Cassius grimaced.

"Otto, you can't come home with me," Cassius said, kneeling in front of him. "I'm not allowed to bring anyone home. But I promise to visit you at Taos."

"Actually, maybe he should come with me too," Connor said. "I'm the only one here who won't get hurt if he loses control of his powers."

"You sure Megan won't mind?" Cassius asked.

"Well, no, but I'm sure she'll agree," Connor said.

"Alright then," Dick said. "Sounds like we've reached an agreement."

"I'll fly the eight kids, and my girls," Cassius said. "Meet you at home?"

"Yeah," Dick said.

Cassius nodded and formed a long stretch of goo, forming five benches. Cassandra and Rose both sat in the first, Cassandra holding Rose against her, and the other eight he'd rescued all took the other seats.

"See you tomorrow Otto," Cassius said in Latvian, Otto nodding.

Then, Cassius formed goo around the kids, reassuring them it was to keep them warm, and took off, a couple of the kids screaming, and a couple of them cheering.

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	67. Chapter 67

I do not own Young Justice or any of the characters.

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Checking In

Cassius glanced at Brion as Connor explained that he was being payed to fix the bike. Then, he turned his gaze back to Otto, who he was passing the time with by tossing a baseball back and forth. Off to the side, Rose was sitting with Cassandra, who was helping her around to avoid reopening her newly bandaged and stitched gunshot wound.

"Can you teach me how to control my powers?" Otto asked finally. "I accidentally melted a hole in the ground last night."

Cassius considered for a moment before nodding. "I can, but not here. And we'll need to be careful, because the goo I'm made out of is highly flammable, making your powers incredibly dangerous for me."

Otto nodded, and Cassius walked over to Connor and Brion, who was using a rag to clean a motorcycle part.

"Hey, I'm taking Otto to try and learn to control his powers," Cassius said. "Think I should take the prince?"

"I think controlling his anger should come before controlling his powers," Connor said.

"Well, yes," Cassius said. "But on the other hand, learning to control his powers could help teach him to _channel_ his anger. I mean, when you were starting out, it took you years to learn to control your anger, but you learned to channel your anger within months of being a hero. If that."

"Being a hero?" Brion frowned.

"Yeah," Cassius nodded. "Me and Connor are heroes. Well, actually he's retired, but he's still a hero. Just not an active one. He used to be all rage, too. Hated the entire world, but in time, he learned to be at peace."

"How could you retire from being a hero?" Brion asked, Cassius slipping the spring he was supposed to be cleaning out of his hand before he could melt it.

"I wanted a quiet life," Connor shrugged. "I _enjoy_ a quiet life. Instead of getting shot at, I now fix motorcycles for money. It's calming. It's nice. Being a hero was great and all, and I'm still here if I'm needed, but I wanted to settle down. I wanted to be able to always be there when Megan came home. I wanted to be there for her to come home _to_. So I retired." He looked back to Cassius. "Take him. I'll finish up here and come out to meet you."

Cassius nodded and gestured for Brion to follow before leading the two of them away from the house, Cassandra and Rose joining them on the way. They didn't have to go far, fortunately. They just went to the remains of Mount Justice, since there was nothing there for them to potentially destroy. As they reached it, Cassius walked to about where the briefing room would have been and turned back to the pair of new meta-humans.

"Okay," Cassius said. "I explained this bit to Otto before we left Markovia. The easiest way to start learning to control your powers is to focus on what you want it to do, and concentrate hard, but to remain calm. For now, I want both of you to focus on forming lava, or plasma if that's what you're actually covered in, Otto, around only your right arm. If it doesn't work, or something else happens, don't freak out, and don't lose your patience. Just remember how it felt and see if you can use that to get it right."

Both nodded, holding their right hands in front of themselves and focusing. Otto's head suddenly began to excrete glowing red plasma while Brion began to melt into the ground again. Brion growled in annoyance, while Otto shouted in surprise before retracting the goo, having burned his shirt off above the middle of the chest. The both tried again, Brion suddenly beginning to release magma from below his knees as Otto's hair turned to plasma, along with his right palm. Brion's growl was louder this time, while Otto hummed in irritation and defiance. On their third try, Otto got his right arm to transform properly and only it. He grinned, until Brion shouted in annoyance, having transformed fully.

"Channel your anger, Brion," Cassius said. "Focus on a single task and direct your anger at it, if it helps."

"Why don't _you_ channel your anger!?" Brion snapped. "All you do is stand there and tell me what to do, when you have _no idea_ how my powers work! You can grow wings, and you are strong! You are not special!"

"You'll find you're incorrect about that," Cassius said, turning into a puddle of goo and back. "I haven't been a human being for decades. I was used in a precursor to the Tar procedure that you two experienced, except that I had shapeshifting powers already. As a result, my powers were corrupted and I became a living mass of Tar. My powers alternate between me needing to constantly focus in order to retain a human form and not permanently turn into a puddle, and then having to focus ridiculously hard in order to use my powers at all. Trust me, I understand how hard it is to control powers similar to yours. I'm not trying to anger you, I'm trying to help you."

"I don't want your help!" Brion snapped, swiping a hand and sending a wave of magma at him and Otto by accident.

Otto transformed fully on instinct, the magma not harming him, and Cassius launched himself into the air, flipping over the magma at a safe distance before landing on his feet again.

"Fine," Cassius said. "Transform back to normal and we'll head back to the house."

"Fine, I will!" Brion snapped, only for nothing to happen. "Why isn't is working!?"

Cassius crossed his arms, waiting patiently. Finally, after nearly five minutes of nothing happening, Brion shouted in effort.

"Otto, knock him out," Cassius said. "It'll deactivate his powers."

Otto nodded, walking over and drilling a punch into Brion's head, knocking him back a step, only for Brion to remain standing.

"What was that?" Brion scoffed. "Don't you even know how to throw a punch? It's like this!"

He drilled his fist into Otto's head, knocking him out instantly, Otto being transformed back to normal before he hit the ground.

"Congratulations, Prince Brion," Cassius said. "You just knocked out a fourteen year old boy. Your father would be so proud."

He flicked a small sphere onto the ground below Brion and it unleashed a cloud of sleeping gas, knocking Brion out in seconds and reverting him back to normal. Cassius sighed, picking up both Markovians and flew back to Connor's house, grabbing a set of clean clothes he'd brought for each of them and enveloped the pair and the clothes with his goo, dressing them in privacy before retracting and sighing, glancing over at his girls as they walked over.

"What happened?" Connor asked.

"Brion lost control and couldn't power down, so I suggested knocking him out," Cassius said. "Otto doesn't know how to throw a punch, though, so to demonstrate, Brion knocked him out, so I hit Brion with sleeping gas."

Connor nodded. "Brion's going to have the worse headache."

"Probably," Cassius nodded, then sighed as his Darkwear lit up and a message from Kaldur appeared.

"We still need to have that talk," the message read. "I can meet you at Megan's house if you have time. I'm sure you'll have a few questions for her as well."

"Is this another Aqualad kills Artemis thing?" Cassius messaged back silently.

"Not entirely," Kaldur responded. "I will explain when you have time to talk."

"I'm at her house with the prince and the plasma kid we rescued now," Cassius said.

"I will be there shortly," Kaldur messaged.

"What's up?" Rose asked.

"Kaldur's coming over," Cassius said. "He wants to talk to us."

"All of us?" Connor asked.

"Me and the girls, specifically," Cassius said. "But I'm sure you could either convince him to let you in, or you could keep an eye on the kids," he gestured at Brion and Otto, "and I could fill you in later if it's important."

Connor nodded. "Alright. That one's probably the better option. How'd they do up until Brion lost control?"

"Otto did alright," Cassius said. "He's a quick study. Brion, on the other hand, struggled."

Connor nodded. "I figured."

Cassius walked over to the bike and knelt beside Connor, who began to walk him through the the motorbikes systems and parts and how to fix different things, for lack of anything better to do. After a few minutes, Cassandra and Rose joined them. A couple hours later, Kaldur arrived and led Cassius and the girls into the house while Connor stayed with Brion and Otto. The talk was short and informative. The split of the Justice League had _not_ been a surprise to Kaldur and Megan. In fact, it had all been a plan. Now that half the Justice League was no longer accepting the supervision of the UN, they could do what needed to be done. Cassius agreed with that part. What he _didn't_ agree with, was the fact that only Kaldur, Megan, Dick, Barbara, Wonder Woman, Batman, and Tim knew that they were still working together, or that Batman Inc. was still serving the Justice League without knowing it.

"You know, keeping secrets like this is what led to the fiasco that occurred with you being undercover," Cassius said. "And when everyone finds out, they'll be mad. If you tell them now, they might be okay with it, but if you let the secret drag on..." he shook his head. "At the very least, Connor, Wally, and Artemis need to be told." He turned to Megan. "If you continue to keep it a secret from Connor, and he finds out later, he'll be mad. If you tell him now, before it becomes a big deal, he'll be okay with it." He glanced outside. "I know Dick, and he's going to turn these two, and Halo, into a team. If he does that, they'll be a part of the Justice League but without UN supervision. But they'll never know, and they'll think they're operating independently. If they find out they've been under the Justice League without being told, they'll feel like they were being used like puppets the entire time."

"You believe we were wrong?" Kaldur asked.

"No," Cassius said. "I believe that keeping it a secret from the rest of us was wrong. Publicly separating to be able to do what we need to is fine. It's a good idea, in my opinion. Especially with Luthor as the Secretary General. However, regardless of what the public believes, the Team, the League, and whatever other teams we inevitably form in the near future...they all should be told the truth."

Kaldur was silent for a few minutes before nodding. "Please send Connor in. We will not tell Brion or Otto unless they join a team, and then not until we know they can keep the secret without letting it slip, either intentionally or otherwise."

Cassius nodded. "And the Team?"

Kaldur was silent for a moment before nodding. "I will consider it, but I promise nothing."

Cassius nodded and walked outside with the girls, replacing Connor and sitting down beside the bike, looking between the two new Markovians. "Tell me about yourselves. Hobbies, things you don't like, that kind of thing. It'll help."

"How will this help?" Brion demanded. "Will it help me convince my brother to lift my banishment?"

"No," Cassius said. "For the time being, you have to get used to the fact that you're not a prince anymore."

Brion stood, but stopped as Cassandra caught his hand, shaking her head.

"He right," Cassandra said. "You...not prince...for now."

Brion frowned. "Is she unable to speak?"

"Thanks to the way her father was raised, she has trouble...getting the words out," Cassius said. "I'm sorry you were banished, but you'll have to accept it until something changes. As of now, you're not a prince. You're a meta-human who struggles to control his powers and who struggles even more to control his anger. I'm trying to help you learn to control both, but you have to work with me in order to make that happen."

"I think Kaldur should tell everyone associated with the League everything," Cassandra messaged.

"I agree," Cassius responded in kind.

Cassius glanced at the house as he heard the hint of Connor's raised voice. Otto introduced himself first and shared bits of information about himself. After he was done, Brion grudgingly did the same. Then, Cassius went, telling them both the shortened version of his story. Brion was far quieter after he'd finished. And Connor returned shortly after he was done.

"So, we're at it again, are we?" Connor asked.

"Apparently so," Cassius sighed. "Hopefully he'll make the right choice?"

"What choice?" Brion asked.

"What to do about the state of Justice League," Cassius said. "What do you think, Connor?"

"I think I have a motorcycle to fix," Connor said. "And I think it's not going to go over as well as it could."

Cassius nodded. "Alright. Brion, would you like to try learning to control your powers again?"

Brion nodded and Cassius led the pair away, Cassandra and Rose staying with Connor this time.

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